Oil dips amid rising OPEC+ supply and tariff worries

SINGAPORE: Oil prices edged lower in early Asian trade on Wednesday, weighed down by a loosening supply-demand balance following increasing OPEC+ output and lingering concerns over the global economic outlook due to tariff tensions.

Brent crude futures dipped 5 cents, or 0.1 per cent, to $65.58 a barrel by 0040 GMT while US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $63.32 a barrel, down 9 cents, or 0.1 per cent.

Both benchmarks climbed about 2 per cent on Tuesday to a two-week high, supported by worries over supply disruptions from Canadian wildfires and expectations that Iran will reject a US nuclear deal proposal that is key to easing sanctions on the major oil producer.

“Despite fears over Canadian supply and stalled Iran-US nuclear talks, oil markets are struggling to extend gains,” said Tsuyoshi Ueno, senior economist at NLI Research Institute, adding that OPEC+ production increases were capping the upside.

Ueno said hopes for progress in US-China trade talks were overshadowed by profit-taking, as investors remained cautious over the broader economic fallout from tariffs.

US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will likely speak this week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday, days after Trump accused China of violating an agreement to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions.

As the Trump administration pressed US trading partners to provide their best offers by Wednesday, the protracted negotiations and moving deadlines have led economists to scale back growth forecasts.Read next: Toyota Vitz still Pakistan’s favourite small Japanese car in 2025