By Barani Krishnan

Investing.com — Oil prices rose Friday with Brent reaching $95/barrel and Us crude close to matching it due to White House fears that Russia might invade Ukraine. WTI was still below its highs, and slightly lower for the week following some White House-style saber-rattling about the Russia-Ukraine war.

Jake Sullivan, the US National Security Adviser, stated that a Russian attack against Russia would be possible by next week. He indicated to a White House press briefing that an air strike is likely. Sullivan said that it was not clear that Vladimir Putin, the Russian leader, has taken a decision.

Oil prices fell from their previous highs.

New York’s traded WTI settled higher by $3.22 or 3.6% at $93.10/barrel WTI had reached an intraday record of $94.65, earlier. WTI dropped 37 cents or 0.3% for the week. This was its first loss in eight weeks.

The global benchmark oil index, London-traded, reached a session peak of $95.65 and traded at $94.86 as of 3:15PM ET (20:15 GMT). Brent rose more than 1% this week after seven weeks of consecutive gains.

International Energy Agency warned that oil supply could be at risk due to a shortage of global demand.

The Paris-based IEA in a monthly report on Friday, lifted its forecast for this year’s global oil demand by 800,000 barrels a day to 3.2 million barrels.

What’s more, it estimated there could be a billion barrels shortfall by the end of last year between what the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies — known as OPEC+ — were supposed to have pumped versus actual deliveries to the market since the start of 2021. 

“The oil market is incredibly tight,” Toril Bosoni, head of the IEA’s markets and industry division, said in a Bloomberg television interview on Friday. “Prices continue to surge and are now reaching levels that are uncomfortable for consumers across the world.”

Before the Russia/Ukraine scandal and the IEA alert, oil prices fell more than 3% over the past week. First because of concerns that Iranian oil supplies might legitimately return onto the market via a Tehran West nuclear deal. Later, due to worries that the Federal Reserve may impose rate increases as high as 0.5% per month to stem runaway U.S. inflation.