Oil prices rose on Friday and remained on track for strong weekly gains as concerns over energy supplies persisted following renewed hostilities between the United States and Iran, which have disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures rose 60 cents, or 0.8%, to $76.90 a barrel by 11:31 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 46 cents, or 0.6%, to $72.54 a barrel.

On a weekly basis, Brent is on track to gain nearly 7%, while WTI is set to rise around 6%.

"The market has pulled back from the highs reached earlier this week, but the geopolitical risk premium remains elevated because traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has nearly come to a standstill, and there is still no clear indication of when normal shipping operations will resume," said Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights.

Shipping disruption in the Strait of Hormuz supports prices despite easing military escalation

The latest developments followed Iranian military strikes on Thursday targeting US military infrastructure in Gulf states in retaliation for American attacks on Iran's southern and eastern coastal provinces, adding further strain to the fragile ceasefire agreement.

In a separate development, Iranian media reported several explosions in southern Iran, including in the Bushehr area, home to one of the country's nuclear power plants.

The International Energy Agency said in a report released on Friday that the latest escalation between the United States and Iran could undermine its previous expectations of a sizeable oil market surplus next year.

The conflict has also delayed the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20% of global daily oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed before the war began on February 28.

Giovanni Staunovo, analyst at UBS, said the absence of additional US strikes on Iran overnight put some pressure on oil prices, although the continued slowdown in shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz limited the downside.

Ship-tracking data showed that liquefied natural gas carriers continued transiting the strait in recent days, although overall daily shipping volumes remain well below normal levels.

US President Donald Trump said this week that he does not believe the war will resume, adding that "any developments that do occur will end very quickly."

"Although the United States has intensified its attacks on military targets inside Iran, markets have taken some comfort from the Trump administration's decision to avoid targeting Iran's energy infrastructure," said Daniel Hynes, Senior Commodity Strategist at ANZ.

Separately, the International Energy Agency lowered its forecast for Russian oil production, citing Ukrainian attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure that are expected to weigh on output in the coming months.