Crude Oil Down on Possible End to Russia-Ukraine War

By Adedapo Adesanya

Crude oil declined by about 1 per cent on Tuesday amid a possible agreement to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which could ease sanctions on Russian crude oil, boosting global supply.

Brent crude shrank by 81 cents or 1.22 per cent to $65.79 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude receded by $1.07 or 1.69 per cent to $62.35 a barrel.

Traders and investors are betting on a cease-fire to end the three-year war, but market analysts warned that if there isn’t one, there could be a bounce in oil prices.

This followed announcement by President Donald Trump of the US in a social media post that he had spoken with his Russian counterpart, Mr Vladimir Putin, after a White House meeting on Monday with the Ukrainian President, Mr Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and European allies.

The American president said arrangements were being made for a meeting between Presidents Putin and President Zelenskiy, which could lead to a trilateral summit involving all three leaders.

The Ukrainian leader described his talks with President Trump as positive and noted discussions about potential US security guarantees for Ukraine.

The American leader also confirmed the US would provide such guarantees, though the extent of support remains unclear.

Worries, however, remain that President Trump could seek to force an agreement on Russia’s terms in order to end the war.

There are some many changes that a possible truce can bring including easing secondary sanctions targeting importers of Russian oil, thereby reducing the risk of global supply disruptions and easing geopolitical tensions slightly.

Meanwhile, Chinese refineries have purchased 15 cargoes of Russian oil for October and November delivery as Indian demand for Russian exports has fallen away.

Bloomberg reported that China is estimated to have imported nearly 75,000 barrels per day of Urals crude in August, citing data by Kpler. The volumes have almost doubled compared to an average of about 40,000 barrels per day of Urals imports so far this year.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) estimated that crude oil inventories in the US fell this week, shrinking by 2.4 million barrels in the week ending August 15. So far this year, crude oil inventories are up nearly 8 million barrels.

Gasoline inventories rose by 1 million barrels and distillate inventories rose by 500,000 barrels.

The official data by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) will be released later on Wednesday.