Oil prices rise to three-year high on back of supply deficit forecasts | Reuters

Oil prices rise to three-year high on back of supply deficit forecasts | Reuters

Oil prices settled at a three-year high above $85 a barrel on Friday, boosted by forecasts of a supply deficit in the next few months as the easing of coronavirus-related travel restrictions spurs demand.

Brent crude futures settled up 86 cents, or 1%, at$84.86 a barrel. Front-month prices, which touched their highest level since October 2018 at $85.10, hit a weekly rise of 3%, its sixth straight weekly gain.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 97 cents, or 1.2%, to $82.28 a barrel. The was up 3.5% on the week in an eighth consecutive weekly rise.

Demand has picked up with the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, with a further boost from power generators who have been turning away from expensive gas and coal to fuel oil and diesel.