Oil prices rise on optimism
NEW YORK: Oil prices settled nearly 2% higher on Friday and notched their first weekly gains since mid-April as a US trade deal with the United Kingdom turned investors optimistic ahead of talks between top officials from Washington and Beijing.
Brent crude futures rose $1.07, or 1.7%, to settle at $63.91 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures advanced $1.11, or about 1.9%, to settle at $61.02. Week-over-week, both benchmarks gained over 4%. US President Donald Trump on Friday said China should open its market to the US, and that an 80% tariff on Chinese goods 'seems right,' a day after he announced a deal lowering tariffs on British car and steel exports, among other agreements with the United Kingdom.
'Energy markets - as bearish as they've been - are finally shaking off some of the pessimism and catching the broader market optimism that's showing back up as progress on trade relationships has begun,' said Alex Hodes, oil analyst at brokerage StoneX.
The UK agreement and Trump's comments on China have raised hopes for similar deals between Washington and Beijing. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was to meet with China's top economic official Vice Premier He Lifeng in Switzerland on May 10. Current US tariffs on Chinese imports stand at 145%.
'While prohibitively high, you can't knock the math ... 80% is substantially less than 145%,' Hodes wrote to clients. Chinese exports rose faster than expected in April while imports narrowed their decline, customs data showed on Friday, giving Beijing some relief ahead of the talks.
Rising hostilities in the Middle East also boosted oil prices this week, Nikos Tzabouras, senior market analyst at trading platform Tradu, said. Israel's military said it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen towards its territory, days after Oman mediated a ceasefire between the US and Yemen's Houthis, who claimed responsibility for Friday's attack.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
an hour ago
- Express Tribune
Trump's travel ban on 12 countries set to take effect from Monday
US President Donald Trump's order banning citizens of 12 countries from entering the United States goes into effect at 12:01 am ET (0401 GMT) on Monday, a move the president promulgated to protect the country from 'foreign terrorists.' The countries affected by the latest travel ban are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The entry of people from seven other countries - Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela - will be partially restricted. Trump, a Republican, said the countries subject to the most severe restrictions were determined to harbor a 'large-scale presence of terrorists,' fail to cooperate on visa security, have an inability to verify travelers' identities, as well as inadequate record-keeping of criminal histories and high rates of visa overstays in the United States. He cited last Sunday's incident in Boulder, Colorado, in which an Egyptian national tossed a gasoline bomb into a crowd of pro-Israel demonstrators as an example of why the new curbs are needed. But Egypt is not part of the travel ban. The travel ban forms part of Trump's policy to restrict immigration into the United States and is reminiscent of a similar move in his first term when he barred travelers from seven Muslim-majority nations. Officials and residents in countries whose citizens will soon be banned expressed dismay and disbelief. Chad President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno said he had instructed his government to stop granting visas to US citizens in response to Trump's action. 'Chad has neither planes to offer nor billions of dollars to give, but Chad has its dignity and its pride,' he said in a Facebook post, referring to countries such as Qatar, which gifted the US a luxury airplane for Trump's use and promised to invest billions of dollars in the US. Afghans who worked for the US or US-funded projects and were hoping to resettle in the US expressed fear that the travel ban would force them to return to their country, where they could face reprisal from the Taliban. Democratic US lawmakers also voiced concern about the policies. 'Trump's travel ban on citizens from over 12 countries is draconian and unconstitutional,' said US Representative Ro Khanna on social media late on Thursday. 'People have a right to seek asylum.'
Express Tribune
2 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Israel orders military to block Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg
Israel said the blockade was essential to Israel's national security as it seeks to eliminate Hamas. PHOTO: ALJAZEERA Listen to article Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz told the military on Sunday to stop a charity boat carrying activists including Sweden's Greta Thunberg who are planning to defy an Israeli blockade and reach Gaza. Operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), the British-flagged Madleen yacht set sail from Sicily on June 6 and is currently off the Egyptian coast, heading slowly towards the Gaza Strip, which is besieged by Israel. 'I instructed the IDF to act so that the Madleen … does not reach Gaza,' Katz said in a statement. 'To the antisemitic Greta and her Hamas-propaganda-spouting friends, I say clearly: You'd better turn back, because you will not reach Gaza.' Climate activist Thunberg said she joined the Madleen crew to 'challenge Israel's illegal siege and escalating war crimes' in Gaza and highlight the urgent need for humanitarian aid. She has rejected previous Israeli accusations of antisemitism. More than 54,000 Palestinians have died during the ongoing Israeli assault, according to Gaza health authorities, with much of the Palestinian territory reduced to rubble. The U.N. has warned that most of Gaza's 2.3 million population is at risk of famine. Katz said the blockade was essential to Israel's national security as it seeks to eliminate Hamas. 'The State of Israel will not allow anyone to break the naval blockade on Gaza, whose primary purpose is to prevent the transfer of weapons to Hamas,' he said. The Madleen is carrying a symbolic quantity of aid, including rice and baby formula, the FFC has said. FFC press officer Hay Sha Wiya said on Sunday the boat was currently some 160 nautical miles (296 km) from Gaza. 'We are preparing for the possibility of interception,' she said. Besides Thunberg, there are 11 other crew members aboard, including Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament. Israeli media have reported that the military plans to intercept the yacht before it reaches Gaza and escort it to the Israeli port of Ashdod. The crew would then be deported. In 2010, Israeli commandos killed 10 people when they boarded a Turkish ship, the Mavi Marmara, that was leading a small flotilla towards Gaza.
Business Recorder
3 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Israel orders military to stop Gaza-bound yacht carrying Greta Thunberg
JERUSALEM: Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz told the military on Sunday to stop a charity boat carrying activists including Sweden's Greta Thunberg who are planning to defy an Israeli blockade and reach Gaza. Operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), the British-flagged Madleen yacht set sail from Sicily on June 6 and is currently off the Egyptian coast, heading slowly towards the Gaza Strip, which is besieged by Israel. 'I instructed the IDF to act so that the Madleen … does not reach Gaza,' Katz said in a statement. 'To the antisemitic Greta and her Hamas-propaganda-spouting friends, I say clearly: You'd better turn back, because you will not reach Gaza.' Climate activist Thunberg said she joined the Madleen crew to 'challenge Israel's illegal siege and escalating war crimes' in Gaza and highlight the urgent need for humanitarian aid. She has rejected previous Israeli accusations of antisemitism. More than 54,000 Palestinians have died during the ongoing Israeli assault, according to Gaza health authorities, with much of the Palestinian territory reduced to rubble. The U.N. has warned that most of Gaza's 2.3 million population is at risk of famine. Israeli military kills 4 near aid distribution site in Gaza, medics say Katz said the blockade was essential to Israel's national security as it seeks to eliminate Hamas. 'The State of Israel will not allow anyone to break the naval blockade on Gaza, whose primary purpose is to prevent the transfer of weapons to Hamas,' he said. The Madleen is carrying a symbolic quantity of aid, including rice and baby formula, the FFC has said. FFC press officer Hay Sha Wiya said on Sunday the boat was currently some 160 nautical miles (296 km) from Gaza. 'We are preparing for the possibility of interception,' she said. Besides Thunberg, there are 11 other crew members aboard, including Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament. Israeli media have reported that the military plans to intercept the yacht before it reaches Gaza and escort it to the Israeli port of Ashdod. The crew would then be deported. In 2010, Israeli commandos killed 10 people when they boarded a Turkish ship, the Mavi Marmara, that was leading a small flotilla towards Gaza.
