Brent crude flat price inched lower into Friday, pairing back from four-month highs, as some players look to take profit on their length, while a stronger dollar added some slight pressure. Currently sitting in the $84/bbl handles, prices are still on track to gain more than 4% this week with demand hopes buoyed by OPEC and IEA forecasts in separate reports. A series of fresh attacks by Ukraine on Russian refineries also bolstered prices this week, especially given the energy ministry said these attacks had led to a 1.5% decline in fuel exports in February. Russia is heading to the polls on Friday with the return of Vladimir Putin expected by a landslide with his approval rating at 86% according to the Levada Centre. The one-month and six-month Brent futures spreads are at $$0.58/bbl and $4.10/bbl respectively.
