Oil Holds Large Gain as Trump Amps Up Truce Pressure on Russia
(Bloomberg) -- Oil held the biggest gain in six weeks after US President Donald Trump reiterated he may impose additional economic penalties on Russia unless a truce is reached with Ukraine.
Brent was above $72 a barrel after closing 3.5% higher in the previous session, while West Texas Intermediate traded near $69. Trump warned of “tariffs and stuff” if a ceasefire isn’t agreed in 10 days and said he wasn’t concerned about the impact on the market, suggesting the US could ramp up production.
“I don’t even worry about it,” he told reporters on Tuesday. “We have so much oil in our country. We’ll just step it up, even further.”
Trump has vowed economic repercussions against Moscow in the past but held off, and his advisers have cast the penalties as likely secondary sanctions that target countries buying Russian oil. Still, given the US president’s desire for lower prices, there are questions about how far he will go.
“This is a knee-jerk move driven more by noise than lasting fundamentals,” said Priyanka Sachdeva, a market analyst at Phillip Nova Pte in Singapore.
Oil is on track for a third monthly gain, and markets also remain focused on the US deadline to nail down trade deals by Aug. 1, and the OPEC+ meeting over the weekend that will decide supply for September. Traders expect the group to agree to another bumper increase to crude production.
Meanwhile, the American Petroleum Institute reported US crude stockpiles rose by 1.5 million barrels last week, according to a document seen by Bloomberg. Government data, including demand figures, are due later Wednesday.
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