Oil Prices Steady with Focus on Tariff Moves, U.S.-Iran Negotiations
Oil was steady after a sluggish session on Monday, with traders monitoring the latest U.S. moves in the trade war and the prospect of easing curbs on Iranian crude.
West Texas Intermediate held near $62 a barrel, with Brent settling just below $65. Wall Street regained some calm on Monday, with stocks and bonds gaining after a tumultuous week in the grip of President Donald Trump’s disruptive tariff policies.
Oil prices have fallen about $10 this month as the trade war stoked fears of a global recession that would hurt energy demand, especially in the U.S. and China — the biggest consumers of crude. Those concerns have led agencies to cut demand outlooks and analysts to cut price forecasts, with the possibility of a supply glut heightened by OPEC+’s surprise decision to bring back production sooner than expected.
The U.S. and Iran held nuclear discussions over the weekend that both sides described as constructive in the first high-level contacts since 2022. The two sides will meet again in Rome on Saturday, to discuss a possible increase in oil output from the OPEC member.
On the demand side, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries cut its consumption outlook for the next two years by about 100,000 barrels a day, following a bigger cut by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. More banks also reduced their price forecasts, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. now forecasting Brent at $66 this year.
Source: Bloomberg
