LONDON, May 1 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Friday as efforts to halt the Iran war remained at an impasse, with Tehran still blocking the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. Navy blocking exports of Iranian crude.
Brent crude futures for July were up $1.13, or 1%, at $111.53 a barrel by 1103 GMT. West Texas Intermediate futures rose 58 cents, or 0.6%, to $105.65.
The Brent benchmark was poised for a 5.8% gain over the week while WTI was on track to finish the week up 11.8%. Brent’s June contract hit $126.41 a barrel before its expiry on Thursday, marking the highest level since March 2022.
Oil prices have been on the rise since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran at the end of February, resulting in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and disruption of shipments of about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supply.
A ceasefire has been in place since April 8, but on Thursday evening Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said it was unreasonable to expect quick results from U.S. talks, the official IRNA news agency reported.
