Oil hits one-week low amid uncertainty over Trump tariffs

Oil hits one-week low amid uncertainty over Trump tariffs

Oil prices fell to a new one-week low on Wednesday as the market weighs how U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs could affect global economic growth and energy demand.

Brent crude futures fell 29 cents, or 0.4%, to $79 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 39 cents, or 0.5%, to 75.44 dollars.

This sends Brent falling for the fifth day in a row, for the first time since September, and WTI down for the fourth day in a row, for the first time since November. Both oil benchmarks closed at their lowest level since January 9 for the second consecutive day.

“Possible sanctions under the new Trump administration remain unclear, with possible tariffs related to Canada and Mexico now appearing to be at the forefront of trader uncertainty,” analysts at energy consultancy Ritterbusch and Associates.

Trump said his administration was discussing imposing a 10% tariff on goods imported from China on Feb. 1, the same day he previously said Mexico and Canada could face tariffs of about 25% .

He also promised to impose tariffs on European imports, without providing further details, and threatened new tariffs against Russia if the country did not reach a deal to end the war in Ukraine.

“The oil market’s attention is slowly moving away from US sanctions against Russia and towards President Trump’s possible trade policy,” analysts at ING said, adding that the energy complex is under pressure with the growing threat of tariffs .

Source: Terra

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