Oil posts biggest weekly gains in over a year ahead of Hurricane Ida | Reuters

Oil posts biggest weekly gains in over a year ahead of Hurricane Ida | Reuters

Oil prices rose 2% on Friday, posting their biggest weekly gains in over a year, as energy firms began shutting U.S. production in the Gulf of Mexico ahead of a major hurricane expected to hit early next week.

Brent futures rose $1.63, or 2.3%, to settle at $72.70 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $1.32, or 2.0%, to settle at $68.74.

That was the highest close for Brent since Aug. 2 and for WTI since Aug. 12.

For the week, Brent gained over 11% and WTI rose more than 10%, which was the biggest weekly percentage gains for both since June 2020.

"Energy traders are pushing crude prices higher in anticipation of disruptions in output in the Gulf of Mexico and on growing expectations OPEC+ might resist raising output given the recent Delta variant impact over crude demand," Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA, said.