It’s been seven terrible weeks for most global financial markets but seven straight weeks of gains in crude oil.

WTI finished down by 84-cents on Friday but climbed $1.80 on the week. It’s the highest finish to a Friday since 2008.

Earlier this year oil spiked as high as $130.50 when the Ukraine war broke out but it was a short-lived spike and finished that week at $109.33.

The latest rally has come on signs of persistent shortages despite Chinese lockdowns, more OPEC supply and the SPR release. The next challenge is the risk of rapidly-slowing global growth amidst higher rates.

So far though, crude has passed all the tests and technically, not much stands in the way of a return to $130.

Even today with all the bearishness in stocks and bonds, the 0.7% decline is hardly material. WTI fell as low as $118.33 but rebounded more than $2 from the lows.

For the weekend, two spots to watch are Libya and Norway. In Libya, rebels are threatening to block another port while in Norway workers could announce a strike.

Demand destruction is likely creeping in; in part because gasoline and diesel prices are even-higher than they should be, because of refinery problems. Yesterday, US retail gasoline prices hit $5/gallon on average nationally for the first time.

This article was written by Adam Button at www.forexlive.com.