Oil prices add to recent gains as Iran guessing game persists
Analysts are at odds over whether Opec and its allies will plug the supply gap left when US sanctions take effect
Beijing — Oil prices inched up on Friday, with investors trying to gauge the potential impact on supply from looming US sanctions on Iran's crude exports. The most-active Brent crude futures contract, for December , had risen 18c to $81.56 a barrel by 1.26am GMT. That was close to a four-year high of $82.55 struck on Tuesday. With the expiry of the Brent November futures contract later on Friday, the front-month contract will become the December contract. US futures were up 21c 0.29% at $72.33 a barrel, on track for a weekly gain. "The market has been focusing on trading headlines on the Iran sanctions for a whole week. But views on how much [oil cartel] Opec and Russia can make up for the losses vary," said Chen Kai, head of commodity research at Shenda Futures. The sanctions kick in on November 4, with Washington asking buyers of Iranian oil to cut imports to zero to force Tehran to negotiate a new nuclear agreement and to curb its influence in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia is exp...
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