Oil stays near $85 a barrel, Brent set for seventh weekly gain | Reuters

Oil stays near $85 a barrel, Brent set for seventh weekly gain | Reuters

Oil prices stayed near multi-year highs on Friday, erasing some earlier losses in Asian trading hours, with concerns about tight supply and stockpiles fuelling bullish sentiment.

Brent crude futures rose 23 cents, or 0.3%, to $84.84 a barrel at 0933 GMT, after Thursday's three-year high of $86.10. The benchmark is set for its seventh weekly gain.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 20 cents, or 0.2%, to reach $82.70 a barrel, not far off a seven-year high hit this week.

Prices have been boosted by worries about coal and gas shortages in China, India and Europe, spurring some power generators to switch from gas to fuel oil and diesel.

Winter weather in much of the United States is expected to be warmer than average, according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast.