Mubasher: Oil prices inched down earlier on Friday amid mounting worries about a slowdown in the world’s economic growth which would curtail petroleum demand.

Earlier in the day, US Nymex crude futures shed $0.1to $65.45 per barrel (pb), while international Brent crude futures $0.3 at $71.40 pb.

However, by 7:46 am GMT, Nymex futures went up 0.17% to $65.57 pb, as Brent futures rose 0.21% to $71.58 pb.

As US Nymex was heading for the seventh weekly decline, with more than a 3% drop in this week, global Brent was on track to record the third consecutive week of losses, falling by 2% in weekly terms.

It is worth noting that Baker Hughes is due to release its data pertaining oil rig count in the US later in the day.

The US and China have levied several rafts of tariffs on one another’s exports, while both sides threatened further duties on hundreds of billions of dollars in each other’s goods. The trade feud between the world’s largest two economies would throw a wrench into the world’s economic growth, by hitting fuel demand.

Oil demand growth in Asia already exuded signs of slowdown as trade rows and a stronger US dollar weigh on the economies of a number of the world’s biggest oil consumers.

Moreover, the currency crisis in Turkey threw emerging markets into turbulence, echoing across equities, bonds and raw materials.

In the same vein, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a build-up of 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 10.9 million bpd in the country’s oil stockpiles over the week ended 10 August, stoking concerns about fuel demand.

US crude was also hit by broader selling of industrial commodities and by the Turkish financial crisis.