Oil Heads for Weekly Gain as Traders Focus on Russia, US Tariffs
Oil was heading for its biggest weekly increase since mid-June after President Donald Trump ramped up pressure on Russia, as the market braced for the fallout from US tariffs that take effect on Friday.
West Texas Intermediate was steady above $69 a barrel, heading for the largest weekly gain since Israel attacked Iran, while Brent traded near $72. Trump has threatened Moscow with economic penalties unless there’s a swift truce to the war in Ukraine, and singled out India for buying Russian crude.
For now, financial markets will be fixated on Trump’s tariffs and any retaliatory measures from targeted countries. The president signed an executive order that increases the rate on Canada to 35% from 25%, but kept in place an exemption for goods under the US-Mexico-Canada trade pact that includes oil.
rump will maintain a minimum global tariff of 10%, while India will be subject to a 25% levy. The US president flagged that duty on the South Asian nation in a social media post on Wednesday, taking aim at its purchases of Russian energy and weapons, and raising the prospect of an additional penalty.
In response, India has told its state-run refiners to come up with plans for buying non-Russian crude, and one person familiar with the directive said it amounted to scenario planning. More than a third of the nation’s overall purchases have been from the OPEC+ producer this year.
Prices:
WTI for September delivery rose 0.2% to $69.43 a barrel as of 12:53 p.m. in Singapore after falling 1.1% on Thursday.
Futures are up more than 6% this week.
Brent for October settlement was 0.3% higher at $71.88 a barrel.
Source: Bloomberg
