Oil prices head for biggest weekly climb since April on supply halts

Oil headed for the biggest weekly gain in four months on interruptions to supply and speculation fuel switching will buoy demand. 

West Texas Intermediate edged below $94 a barrel in Asia, but is still up more than 5 per cent this week. Six oil and gas fields in the Gulf of Mexico have been shut after a leak at a Louisiana booster station halted two pipelines. The conduits are expected to resume service on Friday, according to Shell Plc. 
 

The International Energy Agency boosted its forecast for global demand growth as soaring natural gas prices and heat waves spur demand. Global consumption will rise by 2.1 million barrels a day this year, up 380,000 a day from the agency’s previous forecast. 

In addition, the IEA said OPEC+ is unlikely to increase output in the coming months because of limited spare capacity.Crude’s substantial weekly gain follows a drop to a six-month low last week as investors fretted about the outlook for slower economic growth and weaker consumption. Prices have also benefited in recent days from a brief halt to supplies along a pipeline that carries crude from Russia to Europe.