❗️Oil prices set for steepest weekly drop since COVID-19 pandemic Oil prices were headed for a steep weekly decline after US President Donald Trump's Republican Party suffered losses in the midterm elections, raising expectations of a potential de-escalation in the US-Israeli war on Iran. After rising earlier in a volatile trading session on Friday, Brent crude futures for January delivery fell 74 cents, or 0.8%, to $97.55 a barrel by 08:26 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures also dropped 73 cents, or 0.8%, to $89.79 a barrel. Brent was on course for a 16% weekly decline, marking its steepest percentage drop since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and its largest fall in absolute terms in LSEG records dating back to 1988. WTI was also heading for a weekly loss of more than 13%.