Discount on Western Canada Select Heavy Crude Unchanged

WCS for June delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $9.10 a barrel under the U.S. benchmark WTI, according to brokerage CalRock.

* Canadian heavy crude has been trading at a tight discount in recent months in part due to the opening of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion one year ago, which boosted the country’s oil export capacity.

* Canadian crude has also benefited from U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and other countries, which is boosting demand for non-sanctioned heavy crude producers.

* Canadian heavy crude producers also tend to see tighter differentials when global oil prices are lower, in part because it means less competition for pipeline space.

* Globally, oil prices settled nearly 2% higher on Friday and notched their first weekly gains since mid-April as a U.S. trade deal with the United Kingdom turned investors optimistic ahead of talks between top officials from Washington and Beijing.

(Reporting by Amanda Stephenson in Calgary; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi)