Novorossiysk: Oil prices rose more than 2% on Friday after a Ukrainian drone attack targeted an oil storage facility in the Russian port of Novorossiysk, heightening concerns over potential supply disruptions. Brent crude futures increased by $1.34, or 2.13%, to $64.35 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained $1.40, or 2.39%, to settle at $60.09 a barrel.

According to Qatar News Agency, the gains followed a volatile session on Thursday, during which prices stabilized at the close as expectations of further sanctions on Russian oil helped offset concerns over a persistent global supply surplus. The previous session had seen both benchmarks fall by more than $2 a barrel.

The United States this week imposed new sanctions on Russian oil producers Lukoil and Rosneft, as part of broader efforts to pressure Moscow to engage in peace negotiations with Kyiv. Meanwhile, data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed that US crude oil inventories surged by 6.4 million barrels last week, far exceeding market expectations of a 1.96-million-barrel increase. Gasoline and distillate inventories also fell, although by less than analysts had projected.