Oil Slips as Oman Reports Normal Operations at Key Oil Terminal

Oil prices edged down after Oman said operations at Mina al Fahal port were proceeding normally, following a Reuters report that oil loadings had been suspended after an explosion.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 fell 24 cents, or 0.25%, to $94.79 a barrel by 0704 GMT after settling down 2.84% in the previous session.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 was at $92.48 a barrel, down 56 cents, or 0.6%, following a 3.1% loss on Thursday.

Both contracts are set to post their first weekly gain in three weeks, with WTI up more than 6%, after fighting flared up in the Middle East as U.S.-Iran war peace talks dragged on while traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world's oil passes, remained limited.

Petroleum Development Oman said on Friday that operations at Mina Al Fahal port are proceeding normally, after three sources told Reuters earlier that oil loading had been suspended following an explosion near its mooring berths.

Oman exports 800,000 to 900,000 barrels per day of crude from the terminal.

Analysts have also flagged concerns of falling oil inventories globally that could cause a price spike in the third quarter.

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