Oil prices edged lower from a two-week high in Asian trading on Wednesday after industry data showed a sharp increase in U.S. crude inventories, while investors remained cautious awaiting more trade tariff announcements by President Donald Trump.
As of 21:44 ET (01:44 GMT), Brent Oil Futures expiring in September fell 0.3% to $69.91 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures slipped 0.4% to $68.10 per barrel.
Both contracts climbed to a two-week high on Tuesday, driven by supply disruption concerns from fresh Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping lanes.
A Reuters report on Tuesday stated that four crew members aboard the Liberian-flagged, Greek-operated bulk carrier Eternity C were killed in a drone and speedboat assault off the coast of Yemen.
US crude stocks jumped last week
The American Petroleum Institute (API) on Tuesday reported a sharp, unexpected rise in US crude oil inventories for the week ending July 4, with a build of 7.1 million barrels, far exceeding the forecasted 2.8 million‑barrel draw.
This comes after the previous week saw just a modest 0.68 million‑barrel increase.
Gasoline inventories fell by 2.2 million barrels, while distillate stocks declined by 800,000 barrels.
The latest data pointed to weakening demand and potential oversupply challenges in the US market.
Market watchers now await confirmation from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) report, due later in the day. If EIA mirrors the API trend, it would be the largest increase since January.
Trump to impose 50% tariff on copper imports
President Trump said on Tuesday that he would impose a 50% tariff on imported copper and would soon roll out long-promised duties on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.
A day earlier, he started sending tariff letters, where he notified 14 countries that sharply higher tariffs would take effect on August 1.
The tariff letters outlined a 25% levy on all goods from Japan and South Korea, while some nations face up to 40% tariffs.
Late Tuesday, Trump wrote on social media, "We will be releasing a minimum of 7 Countries having to do with trade, tomorrow morning, with an additional number of Countries being released in the afternoon."
He provided no further details, while investors turned cautious in anticipation of a new wave of tariffs.
Source: Investing.com
Oil prices stabilized on Thursday (February 12th), as the market reassigned a risk premium to US-Iran tensions despite US inventory data showing swelling domestic supplies. This movement confirms one ...
Oil prices rose on Wednesday (February 11th), supported by a combination of geopolitical risk premiums from US-Iran tensions and more solid Asian demand signals particularly from India which helped ea...
Oil remained in the green zone on Tuesday (February 10th), as the market refused to abandon the Middle East risk premium. As of 13:07 GMT (20:07 WIB), Brent rose +0.4% to $69.32/barrel, while WTI rose...
Oil prices fell about 1% on Monday as concerns about conflict in the Middle East eased slightly. The market calmed after the US and Iran agreed to resume talks on Tehran's nuclear program, reducing fe...
Oil prices moved slightly higher in a volatile session on Friday, as investors assessed the direction of nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran. Price movements appeared sensitive to ...
Oil prices stabilized on Thursday (February 12th), as the market reassigned a risk premium to US-Iran tensions despite US inventory data showing swelling domestic supplies. This movement confirms one thing: geopolitical headlines are still more...
Gold prices weakened slightly on Thursday (February 12th), as more solid US employment data reduced market confidence in an imminent Federal Reserve interest rate cut. The strong employment data prompted market participants to shift expectations of...
The Hang Seng Index reversed its downward trend in Hong Kong on Thursday (February 12th), weakening by around 0.9% to around 27,000 after a strong session earlier. This decline halted the momentum of the short term rally, as investors began to...