Oil prices fell on Wednesday, extending the decline from the previous session, as markets weighed US President Donald Trump's declaration of an energy emergency on his first day in office and watched his customs policy, Reuters reports, UNN writes.
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Brent crude futures fell 36 cents, or 0.5%, to $78.93 per barrel at 07:30 GMT (09:30 Kyiv time). Futures for WTI crude oil fell 46 cents, or 0.6%, to $75.37.
Prices declined on Tuesday after Trump outlined a sweeping plan to maximize oil and gas production, including declaring an energy emergency to speed up permitting, rolling back environmental protections, and withdrawing the United States from the Paris climate agreement.
"Market participants are trying to digest the mixed signals that Trump 2.0 brings to the trajectory of oil prices," said Yep Jun Rong, market strategist at IG.
"In the near term, attention will be focused on whether his goal of replenishing the US strategic reserves will be realized," Yep said.
Trump's energy policy is unlikely to spur short-term investment or change production growth in the United States, Morgan Stanley analysts wrote in a note, adding that it could, however, curb a potential decline in demand for petroleum products.
Analysts also question whether Trump's promise to replenish the strategic reserve will change oil demand, as the Biden administration has already purchased oil for emergency stockpiles.
At the same time, investors were cautious as Trump said he plans to impose a 25% tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico on February 1, not on his first day in office, as he had previously promised.
"Oil market attention is gradually shifting from US sanctions against Russia to President Trump's potential trade policy," ING analysts said on Wednesday, adding that the energy sector is under pressure from the growing threat of tariffs.
The US President said that his administration will "probably" stop buying oil from Venezuela, one of the country's largest oil suppliers.
Meanwhile, a rare winter storm hit the US Gulf Coast on Tuesday.
North Dakota's oil production is estimated to have dropped by 130,000-160,000 barrels per day due to extremely cold weather and related operational problems, the state's pipeline authority said on Tuesday.
The impact of the storm on oil and gas operations in Texas remained limited, with minimal gas supply disruptions, minor power outages and plenty of gasoline stocks at the pumps, while many roads and highways remained closed.
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