RoydadNaft –  Brent crude futures fell 87 cents, or 0.82%, to $105.73 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures dropped $1.56, or 1.65%, to $93.05 a barrel.

Oil prices slipped slightly on Friday as markets weighed the chance of a U.S.-Iran truce against Houthi missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, following a week of sharp gains.

Brent was down 87 cents, or 0.82%, at $105.73 a barrel at 0212 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was down $1.56, or 1.65%, at $93.05 a barrel.

The muted open stood in contrast to a volatile week in which oil hit a one-week high on Thursday. Both contracts rose as much as 5%. Brent settled up 3.4% and WTI finished 2.7% higher.

Brent posted its highest close since September 15. It was the first gain in days for WTI, which had fallen 13% over the previous six sessions and is down 6.42% for the week, compared with Brent’s 2.09% rise.

The Brent-WTI spread widened to $12.68, the largest since May, when it exceeded $13.

Fears of a U.S. ban on diesel exports that could flood the domestic market are largely behind the split. The two benchmarks usually move together, even though the U.S. contract typically trades at a discount.

“The unusually wide WTI-Brent spread also reflects the different regional risk profiles at play,” said Tim Waterer, chief analyst at KCM Trade.

U.S. and Iranian negotiators in New York are exploring a phased path out of the war that would have Tehran reopen the Strait of Hormuz and Washington lift its economic blockade of Iran, sources close to the talks said this week.

Since the war began in late February, about one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas shipments have been curtailed, pushing prices up 50% in March alone and sending liquefied natural gas buyers looking farther afield for stable supplies.

On Thursday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said it is up to the United States to decide when the war ends. “It’s America that must choose whether it wants to end this or not,” he said in an interview aired Thursday on Fox News.

Saudi Arabia intercepted six ballistic missiles fired by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis, thwarting attacks on the southern province of Taif and the Yanbu area on the Red Sea, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said.

Ongoing attacks “serve as a clear reminder that critical oil assets remain firmly in the firing line,” Waterer said.

Saudi Arabia is ramping up crude volumes through its East-West Pipeline to the Red Sea export hub at Yanbu, though tanker loadings have not yet resumed, according to industry sources, satellite imagery and shipping data.