Oil prices saw a modest rebound during Wednesday’s Asian trading session, recovering slightly from a five-week low reached in the previous day’s session. The prospect of stricter U.S. sanctions targeting purchasers of Russian crude provided some upward momentum.
However, gains remained limited as concerns persisted over increased production from OPEC+ and subdued global demand, keeping the recovery tentative.
Brent crude futures for October rose by 0.5%, reaching $68.00 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures increased 0.5% to $64.53 per barrel as of 21:50 ET (01:50 GMT).
The market was further supported by data from the American Petroleum Institute (API), which revealed a much larger-than-expected drawdown of 4.2 million barrels in U.S. oil inventories last week, significantly surpassing forecasts of a 1.8 million barrel decline.
Trump Continues to Target India with Tariff Threats Over Russian Oil Purchases
U.S. President Donald Trump renewed his warnings on Tuesday, threatening additional trade tariffs on India due to its ongoing imports of Russian oil. This comes after Washington imposed 25% reciprocal tariffs on India last week.
Trump criticized New Delhi’s continued Russian oil purchases, arguing they finance Russia’s conflict with Ukraine. India has dismissed these criticisms and reportedly plans to maintain its Russian oil imports in the short term. The country depends heavily on crude imports, sourcing roughly 80% of its oil needs from abroad.
Trump also signaled potential tariff hikes against China, another significant buyer of Russian crude.
Should India and China reduce or halt their Russian oil purchases, it would tighten global oil supply, lending some price support.
Meanwhile, signs of possible easing in the Russia-Ukraine tensions have emerged. Bloomberg reported that Moscow is considering measures such as pausing air strikes to avoid triggering further U.S. sanctions. U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff is scheduled to visit Moscow this week to discuss the situation.
Oil Faces Pressure from Oversupply and Demand Concerns
Despite Wednesday’s modest gains, oil prices have faced sharp declines over recent sessions.
The downward trend follows OPEC+’s decision to raise production by 547,000 barrels per day starting in September.
The group has consistently ramped up output this year, stoking worries about an oversupplied market in the latter half of 2025.
Additionally, a series of disappointing economic indicators from the U.S. and China released last week have intensified fears of sluggish growth and weakening demand among the world’s largest oil consumers.
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