Oil Prices Rise as Trump Tariff Plans Stoke Import Fears

by Bloomberg | Mia Gindis and Julia Fanzeres
click here to read this article at Rigzone.com
*this article was not written by Roseland Oil & Gas

Oil gained after the White House said President Donald Trump’s plan to place tariffs on imports from major US crude supplier Canada and other countries will go into effect on Saturday.

West Texas Intermediate rose 0.8% to settle near $74 a barrel after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt reiterated that the levies on Canada, Mexico and China will start as soon as Feb. 1. More than half of US crude imports come from its northern neighbor, mostly from the oil-rich province of Alberta.

The statement compounded bullish sentiment from after Trump said Monday night that he favored across-the-board tariffs “much bigger” than 2.5% and charges on some foreign-made goods in the “near future,” listing products including steel, aluminum and copper.

“The surge in prices this afternoon is generated by fears that the price of imported Canadian crude is going to get more expensive,” said Scott Shelton, an energy specialist at TP ICAP Group Plc. The lack of heavy Canadian crude would make it more difficult to blend light crude, such as WTI, he added.

Oil had sunk earlier in the session on reports that Russia is sending cargoes of sanctioned oil to India on tankers that have been blacklisted by the US Treasury, setting up a test of Moscow’s ability to circumvent the restrictions. The nation’s exports of oil products are set to hit an 11-month high of about 2.3 million barrels a day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Crude markets have had a bumpy start to the year as the Russia sanctions and cold weather ratcheted prices higher and sent barrels in the Middle East soaring. Analysts have grown more optimistic on the outlook, with Bank of America Corp. saying it no longer sees a large surplus this year.

Looking ahead, oil traders expect OPEC and allies to stick with their current supply policy at a review meeting next week, resisting pressure from Trump to boost production and bring down crude prices. At present, the group intends to bring back output in monthly tranches starting from April.

Oil Prices:

• WTI for March delivery rose 0.8% to settle at $73.77 a barrel in New York.
• Brent for March settlement gained 0.5% to settle at $77.49 a barrel.

by Bloomberg | Mia Gindis and Julia Fanzeres
click here to read this article at Rigzone.com
*this article was not written by Roseland Oil & Gas