The discount on Western Canada Select (WCS) heavy crude versus the North American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) widened on Friday:

* WCS for February delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $13.50 a barrel under the WTI benchmark, according to brokerage CalRock, having settled at $12.75 a barrel under the U.S. benchmark on Thursday.

* Global oil prices settled lower on Friday but notched their fourth straight weekly gain, as the latest U.S. sanctions on Russian energy trade added to worries about oil supply disruptions.
Source: Reuters