Trump signaled after the summit with Putin that he was in a hurry to impose tariffs on countries buying oil from Russia.
Crude oil futures showed muted reaction and traded modestly higher as traders took stock of the outcome of the summit between President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Alaska on Friday.
The summit concluded without an agreement to end the war in Ukraine, now in its fourth year. However, the U.S. President has called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to end the war and made his stance clear that the eastern European nation wouldn’t be added to NATO and that Crimea wouldn’t be ceded back to the country.
Zelenskyy and European Union officials are set to meet with Trump at the White House on Monday to discuss ending the war and firming up U.S. security guarantees.
Additionally, Trump signaled after the summit that he was in a hurry to impose tariffs on countries buying oil from Russia, adding that he would act within weeks if no progress is made to end the war.
The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) grade crude oil finished the week ended Aug. 15 down 1.7% at $62.80 a barrel, which marked the second straight week of declines.
At last check, crude oil traded up 0.13% at $62.88. The United States Oil Fund, LP (USO), an exchange-traded fund that tracks the price of WTI crude, has lost 3.64% so far this year.
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward the ETF has remained ‘neutral’ by late Sunday (48/100), with the message volume staying at ‘low’ levels.
Oil traders will likely look forward to the war-related talks and potential headlines regarding oil tariffs. Key economic catalysts from the U.S., such as the minutes of the July Federal Reserve Open Market Committee meeting (FOMC), weekly jobless claims data, and flash private sector activity readings, could have ramifications for growth and the U.S. dollar.
Rising odds of a rate cut could weigh down on the dollar, which in turn will be positive for crude oil, while any data signaling a setback to global growth would adversely impact oil due to demand worries.
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