Oil prices dropped on Friday for the second consecutive week due to concerns over the prolonged trade dispute between the United States and China. This ongoing trade war between the two largest economies is expected to dampen crude consumption and hinder global economic growth.

Brent futures slid by 0.5% to $63.02 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures decreased by 0.6% to $59.71. Both benchmarks had previously experienced a drop of over $2 on Thursday.

Brent is anticipated to see a 4% decline this week following an 11% decrease in the previous week, with WTI also expected to fall by 3.8% after an 11% drop in the prior week.

The prolonged trade conflict between the U.S. and China is likely to disrupt global trade flows and impact global economic growth, subsequently affecting crude consumption as the world's top two oil consumers.

According to Daniel Hynes, a senior commodity strategist at ANZ, oil prices are facing downward pressure due to concerns about a potential global economic slowdown. ANZ predicts that if global economic growth falls below 3%, oil consumption could decrease by 1%.

The trade tensions escalated as U.S. President Donald Trump increased tariffs against China to 145% on Thursday, despite announcing a temporary halt on heavy tariffs against numerous trading partners the day before. In response, China raised tariffs on U.S. goods to 84%.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration revised its global economic growth projections downward on Thursday and warned that tariffs could have a substantial impact on oil prices. As a result, the EIA reduced its U.S. and global oil demand forecasts for both this year and the next.