NEW YORK (Commodity Online) : World oil prices dropped while gold edged up to close the week higher Friday mainly after turn of events in Libya and Japan. Light sweet crude for April delivery ended trading for the week at $101.07 a barrel while Brent crude in London plunged to $113.93 a barrel. The black gold lost momentum after Muammar Gadhafi was forced to make a ceasefire after the UN authorized a non-fly zone over Libya and gave authority to ‘protect’ the people of Libya from Gadhafi’s forces. Analysts said the ceasefire will help easing concerns over Libya’s oil destinations and erase fears about possible damage to its energy facilities. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for April, settled at $101.07 a barrel, down 35 cents from Thursday's market close. The rebellion in Libya has halted oil shipments of about 1.5 million barrels per day from that country. Libya produced about 2 per cent of the world’s oil. Meanwhile, gold recovered from earlier hiccups to close higher again for the week. Libyan ceasefire impact which affected oil spared gold as Japan crisis and G7 attempts to weaken the yen outweighed the calming influence of a ceasefire in Libya. Gold futures for April delivery rose $11.90, or 0.8 percent, to settle at $1,416.10 an ounce on the Comex in New York. The thinly traded March-delivery contract ended up 0.9%, or $11.90, at $1,415.90 per troy ounce. Despite locking in a gain on the day, gold ended 0.6% off session highs of $1,424.10. Silver also advanced as May delivery gained 80 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $35.058 an ounce. The price, down 2.4 percent this week, has doubled in the past year. Investor demand for a safe haven lifted gold prices Friday as worries about Japan and the Group of Seven's attempts to weaken the yen outweighed the calming influence of a ceasefire in Libya. The most actively traded contract, for April delivery, gained $11.90, or 0.9%, to settle at $1,416.10 per troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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