Oil prices rose amid hopes for US-China talks and a decline in US production
Kyiv • UNN
Oil prices rose, supported by positive sentiment regarding trade negotiations between the US and China. Signs of a decline in US shale oil production also had an impact.
Oil prices trimmed gains on Wednesday, but rose for a second session, finding support in positive investor sentiment about trade talks between the US and China to be held this weekend, and signs of declining shale oil production in the US, Reuters reports, UNN writes.
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Brent crude futures rose 34 cents a barrel, or about 0.6%, to $62.49 a barrel at the time of writing, Reuters said, while US West Texas Intermediate crude rose 44 cents, or 0.7%, to $59.53.
The US and China are due to meet in Switzerland in what could be the first step towards resolving a trade war that is undermining the global economy.
"Clearly, hopes for trade talks are high," said Bjarne Schildrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB.
Both benchmarks fell to four-year lows this week after OPEC+ decided to accelerate production growth, raising concerns about oversupply at a time when US tariffs have heightened concerns about demand.
However, some US producers have indicated they will cut spending, warning that oil production in the country may have peaked, which is also contributing to market growth, analysts say.
"It is also worth noting that the increase in OPEC production over the weekend was fully priced in," said Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen.
Trade talks between the US and China will begin after weeks of escalating tensions that have seen tariffs on imports of goods between the world's two largest economies soar well above 100%.
"However, volatility is expected to remain, with upside potential limited as OPEC+ returns barrels to the market faster than expected and US policy remains unpredictable," said Tamas Varga, an analyst at brokerage and consulting firm PVM.
US government data on inventories is due to be released later. Analysts polled by Reuters expect US crude inventories to fall by an average of 800,000 barrels last week.
Market sources said crude inventories fell by 4.5 million barrels in the week ended May 2, citing data from the American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday.
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