Brent crude futures fell 36 cents, or 0.4%, to $96.23 a barrel by 0309 GMT after settling 3.1% higher on Thursday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $90.29 a barrel, down 21 cents, or 0.2%, following a 2.7% increase in the previous session.
Still, the benchmark contracts were headed for weekly losses of about 1.5%.
While bullish U.S. weekly data bolstered optimism for improved fuel demand for the near-term, lingering recession fears and a possible increase in output by OPEC+ will likely limit oil price's upside, said Satoru Yoshida, a commodity analyst with Rakuten Securities.
U.S. crude inventories fell sharply as the nation exported a record 5 million barrels of oil a day in the most recent week, with oil companies finding heavy demand from European nations looking to replace crude from warring Russia.
Keeping crude supplies snug, U.S. oil refineries plan to keep running near full throttle this quarter, according to executives and estimates, as refiners set aside worries about recession and sliding retail prices to deliver more fuel.
