Oil prices held steady in early trading on Friday. But they were ready for a third straight week of losses after markets saw dramatic declines over fears of a weakening U.S. economy and a slowdown in Chinese demand

The US West Texas Intermediate was up 17 cents, or 0.3%, to $68.73 per barrel after four consecutive days of losses, while Brent rose 14 cents, or 0.2%, to $72.64 per barrel at 0002 GMT. Brent was expected to close 8.7% lower for the week, while WTI was expected to close 10.5% lower. Oil prices were also affected by the strengthening of the dollar after the European Central Bank raised rates on Thursday and signalled the need for further tightening, a day after the US Federal Reserve also raised rates.