Oil Holds Drop as Supply Issues and Geopolitics Dog the Outlook
Oil held a decline as the prospect of increased supply from Iraq weighed on prices, with US President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the three-year war in Ukraine also in focus.
Global benchmark Brent steadied near $75 a barrel after losing nearly 3% on Friday, while US marker West Texas Intermediate briefly dipped below $70 at the week’s open. Iraq may ship 185,000 barrels a day from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region should a pipeline to Turkey resume operations, a deputy Iraqi minister said. No timeline has yet been set.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he would be ready to step down if it were to guarantee peace to his country. Trump has called for Ukraine to hold elections, and opened talks with Russia. A settlement with Moscow could pave the way for sanctions to be eased, potentially shifting export flows.
Crude has had a bumpy start to 2025 as an initial series of gains unraveled, with prices losing all of their year-to-date gains. The slide came as Trump’s multiple tariff actions weighed on the outlook for global growth, US stockpiles expanded, and concerns persisted about poor Chinese demand.
OPEC and its allies are now widely expected to once again delay plans to revive oil production as global markets contend with a potential surplus. More than 70% of traders and analysts surveyed anticipate the group will postpone the first in a series of monthly increases scheduled for April.
Brent for April settlement rose 0.1% to $74.49 a barrel at 7:50 a.m. in Singapore. WTI for April delivery was steady at $70.39 barrel.
Earlier, futures lost as much as 0.9% to $69.80.
Source: Bloomberg
