Shafaq News/ Oil prices fell nearly 3% on Friday, headed for their biggest weekly decline since June as concern around a slow economic recovery from COVID-19 pandemic added to worries about weak oil demand.

Brent crude LCOc1, the international benchmark, dropped $1.08, or 2.5%, to $42.99 a barrel, by 10:53 a.m. EDT (1453 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) CLc1 fell $1.12, or 2.7%, to $40.25 a barrel.

Brent was on track for a weekly loss of 4.5%, while WTI was set to lose 6.3%

Prices were pressured by a report showing U.S. job growth slowed further in August as financial assistance from the government ran out.

The unemployment rate fell to 8.4% last month, compared to a forecasted 9.8%, which some market analysts said would lessen urgency in Washington, D.C. to pass additional economic stimulus legislation.

OPEC began in August to ease the scale of the cuts, raising output by almost 1 million BPD.