Oil prices fall sharply after double-digit weekly gains above $100

Oil prices retreated on Friday, but remained on track for a weekly gain of almost 10% after soaring above $100 a barrel for the first time in months. As of 6:27 a.m. ET, front-month Brent crude oil futures, the global benchmark, were down by 3.58% to trade at $103.78 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate futures, their U.S. counterpart, were down 2.17% to $99.23 per barrel. On Thursday, Brent crude peaked at around $108 a barrel, while WTI hit more than $104. Stock Chart IconStock chart iconCrude oil futuresBrent futures were on course for a weekly gain of 8.4%, and set to end the week above the critical $100 mark for the first time since mid-May. WTI's week-to-date gain stood at 9.2%.Friday's decline snaps five consecutive days of gains for Brent crude and an eight-day winning streak for WTI. Markets are bracing for a protracted Iran war, reacting to escalating conflict in the Middle East and a Wall Street Journal report that said top White House advisors had discussed with President Donald Trump the possibility that the conflict could drag on beyond his current term.Trump has said the conflict will end after the U.S. midterm elections, and that oil and gas prices will also fall after...