Oil prices rose slightly due to Trump and China
15 April 08:59
On Tuesday, oil prices showed a slight increase, Komersant ukrainskyi reports with reference to Reuters. It is caused by new exceptions to tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump, as well as an increase in oil imports to China in anticipation of tougher sanctions on Iranian supplies.
Thus, futures for Brent crude oil rose by 12 cents (0.2%) to $65 per barrel as of 03:50 GMT, while US WTI crude oil rose by 13 cents (0.2%) to $61.66.
“Trump has made exceptions for electronics tariffs and signaled an easing of auto tariffs, which is seen as a retreat from previously announced import levies, thus supporting risk assets, including oil. However, the rally in stock markets and commodities, which are sensitive to economic growth, is skeptical, as his policy is unpredictable,”
– said independent market analyst Tina Teng.
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Trump’s chaos continues
In a new twist to the trade war, Trump said he is considering modifying the 25% tariffs on imports of cars and auto parts from Mexico, Canada and other countries.
The Trump administration on Friday announced tariff exemptions for smartphones, computers, and some other electronic goods, most of which are imported from China. This led to a slight rise in both oil benchmarks on Monday.
On Sunday, Trump said that he would announce the tariff rate on imported semiconductors within the next week, and on Monday, the Federal Register published a notice of the start of an investigation into semiconductor imports on April 1.
The unstable US trade policy has created uncertainty for global oil markets and forced OPEC to cut its demand forecast on Monday for the first time since December.
Tariffs are more important than Iran’s nuclear program
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Friday that the U.S. could halt Iranian oil exports as part of Trump’s plan to put pressure on Tehran over its nuclear program.
“The market is digesting the rapid changes in tariff policy while weighing them against the US-Iran nuclear talks. Clearly, the market is more focused on tariffs and their impact on oil demand,”
– ING analysts said in a Tuesday note.
The situation in Asia
Prices were also supported by data released on Monday, which showed that China’s crude oil imports in March rose by almost 5% from a year earlier, as Iranian oil supplies increased in anticipation of tougher US sanctions.
Kazakhstan on Monday reported that its oil production was down 3% in the first two weeks of April compared to the March average, confirming a Reuters report, although this still leaves its output above OPEC’s quota.
