Oil prices rise amid Ukraine ceasefire uncertainty

Oil prices rebounded on Friday, recovering some of their losses of more than 1% in the previous session, supported by diminishing prospects for a quick end to the war in Ukraine.

Brent crude futures rose 46 cents, or 0.7%, to $70.34 a barrel by 04:06 GMT, after falling 1.5% in the previous session.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $67.03 a barrel, up 48 cents, or 0.7%, after closing down 1.7% on Thursday, according to Reuters.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Moscow supports the U.S. proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine in principle, but he asked for clarifications and conditions that appeared to rule out a quick end to the fighting. “Russia’s lukewarm support for a 30-day ceasefire proposal with Ukraine has dampened confidence in a short-term ceasefire,” said Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at IG.

He added, “There is a sense that the US will not lift sanctions until a ceasefire is agreed upon.”

However, the global trade war, which has rattled financial markets and sparked recession fears, is escalating, with US President Donald Trump threatening on Thursday to impose 200% tariffs on wine and other alcoholic beverage imports from Europe.

The International Energy Agency warned on Thursday that global oil supply could exceed demand by about 600,000 barrels per day this year, due to US-led growth and weaker-than-expected global demand.

The agency said, “The macroeconomic conditions that underpin our oil demand forecasts have deteriorated over the past month with escalating trade tensions between the US and several other countries,” prompting it to lower its demand growth estimates for the fourth quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2025.