NEW YORK: Oil prices edged lower on Wednesday on a rise in US crude stockpiles and easing concern over Libyan supply, with US tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports also in focus.
Brent crude futures were down 44 cents, or 0.57%, at $77.05 a barrel by 1400 GMT. US crude futures fell 41 cents, or 0.56%, to $73.36. The White House said on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump still plans to impose 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico on Saturday. “Crude prices keep dancing to the rhythm of Trump’s tariff orchestra, with Canada tariffs going into effect on Saturday, potentially lifting US prices then,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank. Canada supplied 3.9 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil to the US in 2023, roughly half of overall imports for the year, while Mexico supplied 733,000 bpd, Energy Information Administration data shows.
“Overall prices trade a tad softer after Libya said exports have resumed and API reported a weekly increase in US stockpiles. In addition, OPEC+ is expected to stick to its already announced production increase from April,” said Hansen. US crude oil and gasoline stocks rose last week while distillate inventories fell, market sources said on Tuesday, citing American Petroleum Institute figures. The Energy Information Administration, the statistical arm of the US Department of Energy, is due to release weekly data at 1530 GMT on Wednesday.
Supply concerns eased after Libya’s National Oil Corp said on Tuesday that export activity was running normally after it held talks with protesters demanding a halt in loadings at one of its main oil ports. The OPEC+ Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee meeting next Monday will be another focus for the market in the worryingly unpredictable political and economic environment, said Tamas Varga, analyst at oil broker PVM. Saudi Arabia’s energy minister and several of his OPEC+ counterparts have held talks since Trump’s call for lower oil prices and ahead of a meeting next week of OPEC+ oil-producing countries, according to official statements and sources.
“(Trump’s) objective is to force Russia, one of the allies of Saudi Arabia and the heavyweight in the OPEC+ group, to the negotiating table to end its hostilities against Ukraine,” Varga said, adding that Trump intends to do this by lowering oil prices through increased production, hopefully lowering inflation and domestic pump prices in the process.
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