Oil prices dip as market awaits EIA report
Brent crude futures lost 20 cents, or 0.3%, to $66.43 a barrel by 10:36 a.m. CDT (1536 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were off by 39 cents, or 0.61%, to $63.51.
"We're still locked into a range, waiting for an Energy Information Administration report this morning," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group.
Flynn said traders were watching to see if the EIA report would track with a report issued earlier on Tuesday by OPEC on its demand and production outlook.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries raised its forecast for global oil demand next year and trimmed its forecast for growth in supply from the United States and other producers outside the wider OPEC+ group, pointing to a tighter market outlook.
OPEC's monthly report on Tuesday said global oil demand will rise by 1.38 million barrels per day in 2026, up 100,000 bpd from the previous forecast. Its 2025 projection was left unchanged.
U.S. President Donald Trump extended a tariff truce with China to November 10, staving off triple-digit duties on Chinese goods as U.S. retailers prepared for the critical end-of-year holiday season.
This raised hopes that an agreement could be reached between the world's two largest economies and avert a virtual trade embargo between them. Tariffs risk slowing global growth, which could sap fuel demand and drag oil prices lower.
U.S. consumer prices increased in July as tariff-induced rising costs for imported goods helped to drive the strongest gain in six months for one measure of underlying inflation.
Also potentially weighing on the oil market, Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are due to meet in Alaska on Friday to discuss ending Russia's war in Ukraine.
The U.S. has stepped up pressure on Russia to end the conflict, with Trump setting a deadline of last Friday for Russia to agree to peace in Ukraine or have its oil buyers face secondary sanctions. He has also pressed India and China to reduce their purchases of Russian oil.
"If Friday's meeting brings a ceasefire or even a peace deal in Ukraine closer, Trump could suspend the secondary tariffs imposed on India last week before they come into force in two weeks," Commerzbank said in a note.
"If not, we could see tougher sanctions against other buyers of Russian oil, like China."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
10 minutes ago
- Reuters
US cancels India trade talks scheduled for August, NDTV Profit says
Aug 16 (Reuters) - A planned visit by U.S. trade negotiators to New Delhi from August 25-29 has been canceled, delaying talks on a proposed bilateral trade agreement, Indian business and financial news network NDTV Profit reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.
Reuters
40 minutes ago
- Reuters
Oil markets seen bearish after Trump-Putin Alaska meeting
LONDON, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Oil markets are set for a muted price reaction when they open on Sunday after U.S. President Donald Trump's and Russian leader Vladimir Putin's meeting in Alaska, at which Trump said a fully-fledged peace deal was the aim for Ukraine rather than a ceasefire. Trump said he had agreed with Putin that negotiators should go straight to a peace settlement - not via a ceasefire, as Ukraine and European allies, until now with U.S. support, have been demanding. Trump said he would hold off imposing tariffs on countries such as China for buying Russian oil following his talks with Putin. He has previously threatened sanctions on Moscow and secondary sanctions on countries such as China and India that buy Russian oil if no moves are made to end the Ukraine war. "This will mean Russian oil will continue to flow undisturbed and this should be bearish for oil prices," said ICIS analyst Ajay Parmar. "It is worth noting that we think the impact of this will be minimal though and prices will likely see only a small dip in the very near term as a result of this news." The oil market will wait for developments from a meeting in Washington on Monday between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. European leaders have also been invited to the meeting, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. "Market participants will track comments from European leaders but for now Russian supply disruption risks will remain contained," said Giovanni Staunovo, analyst at UBS. Brent settled at $65.85 a barrel on Friday, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate at $62.80 - both down nearly $1 before the talks in Alaska. Traders are waiting for a deal, so until that emerges, crude prices are likely to be stuck in a narrow range, said Phil Flynn, a senior analyst with Price Futures Group. "What we do know is that the threat of immediate sanctions on Russia, or secondary sanctions on other countries is put on hold for now, which would be bearish," he said. After the imposition of Western sanctions, including a seaborne oil embargo and price caps on Russian oil, Russia has redirected flows to China and India.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Air Canada flight attendants picket at airports; businesses seek government intervention
MONTREAL/TORONTO, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Hundreds of Air Canada ( opens new tab employees formed picket lines outside major Canadian airports and business leaders sought government intervention on Saturday, hours after unionized flight attendants walked off the job over a wage contract dispute. The strike, which started just before 1 a.m. EDT (0500 GMT), forced Canada's largest airline to cancel all of its 700 daily flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers who had to find alternative flights or stay put. The airline said in a statement on Saturday that it has started locking out thousands of flight attendants in response to the strike action. The carrier had offered a 38% increase in total compensation for flight attendants over four years, with a 25% raise in the first year, which the Canadian Union of Public Employees said was insufficient. CUPE, representing more than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants, confirmed the work stoppage in a social media post. It is the first strike by Air Canada flight attendants since 1985. Wesley Lesosky, president of the Air Canada component of CUPE, said in a press conference in Toronto that, as of Saturday morning, there were no bargaining sessions scheduled between the two sides, which have held on-and-off negotiations for months. "We are here because Air Canada forces us to work for free for hours and hours every day, and we are here because we are not going to accept it anymore," he said. Outside Toronto Pearson International Airport - the country's busiest - hundreds of cabin crew waved flags, banners and picket signs. Union officials called on members to assemble outside all of the country's major airports, including in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver. Montreal-based Air Canada said the suspended flights included those operated by its budget arm, Air Canada Rouge. The stoppage would affect about 130,000 customers a day, the carrier said in a statement. Flights by Air Canada's regional affiliates - Air Canada Jazz and PAL Airlines - will operate as usual. The dispute between the union and the airline centers on wages. Attendants are currently paid only when their plane is moving. The union is seeking compensation for time spent on the ground between flights and when helping passengers board. The union has said Air Canada offered to compensate flight attendants for some work that is now unpaid but only at 50% of their hourly rate. A source close to the negotiations told Reuters the union is looking for parity on wages with Canadian leisure carrier Air Transat, where flight attendants approved a contract last year that provided for total compounded increases of 30% over five years, making them the highest paid in the industry in Canada. Air Canada did not confirm if such a proposal had been put forth by the union. "What we're asking for is not unreasonable. It is not a high demand. It is not that far off other competitors such as Air Transat. It is realistic and it is deserved," Lesosky from CUPE said. The impact of a strike will ripple far beyond Canada. Air Canada is the busiest foreign carrier servicing the U.S. by number of scheduled flights. While passengers have generally voiced support for the flight attendants on social media, Canadian businesses - already reeling from a trade dispute with the U.S. - have urged the federal government to impose binding arbitration on both sides, ending the strike. "The federal government has a responsibility to all Canadians to use its lawful authority to restore service today. The cost of inaction would be devastating," Goldy Hyder, president and CEO of the Business Council of Canada, said on Saturday. The Canada Labour Code gives Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu the right to ask the country's Industrial Relations Board to impose binding arbitration in the interests of protecting the economy. Air Canada has asked Prime Minister Mark Carney's minority Liberal government to act, but the union says it wants a negotiated solution, as binding arbitration would take pressure off the airline. Hajdu has repeatedly urged the two sides to return to the bargaining table. In a note to clients, analysts at financial services firm TD Cowen urged the carrier to "extend an olive branch to end the impasse," adding that investors are worried that any cost savings on labor would be outweighed by lost earnings in the airline's most important quarter.
