Barclays on Friday cut its Brent crude price forecasts to $96 per barrel for 2026 and $85 per barrel for 2027, down from $100 and $88 respectively, after an increase in oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
* Crude prices were on course for weekly losses, as more oil tankers exited the strait, easing supply concerns, even though a cargo vessel was hit near Oman on Thursday.
* Data on Thursday showed that crude shipments through the strait rose this week to their highest since the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran began at the end of February.
* But Barclays said that even if flows continue returning to more normal levels in the coming days, inventories are likely to decline for at least a few more weeks.
* Barclays said its balances indicate a deficit in the third quarter of 2026, largely due to the lag in production recovery.
* Saudi Aramco resumed oil loading at its Ras Tanura terminal in the Gulf after a nearly four-month halt, data from LSEG showed.
* UBS on Thursday cut its Brent crude forecasts to $85 a barrel for end-September and end-December, from $105 and $95 respectively.
(Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru; editing by Barbara Lewis)