Oil Holds Modest Gain With Focus on Ukraine Talks, Venezuela

(Bloomberg) — Oil held a gain as investors weighed the outlook for a ceasefire in Ukraine and the fallout from tensions between the US and Venezuela.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Brent traded below $63 a barrel after climbing 0.4% on Wednesday, while West Texas Intermediate was near $59. US President Donald Trump said a meeting between his envoy and President Vladimir Putin was “reasonably good” but acknowledged the outcome for a peace deal was uncertain.

Separately, Trump reiterated the US will start striking drug cartels on land in Venezuela very soon. American forces have been massing in the region, with the situation adding some risk premium to oil prices, partially offsetting concerns around a surplus that’s expected to swell to a record next year.

The “Venezuela situation warrants caution” by the market, said Gao Jian, a Shandong-based analyst at Qisheng Futures Co. However, supply fundamentals continue to exert “bearish pressure on crude oil,” he added.

Oil is on track for an annual loss as OPEC+ brings back idled output and other producers boost supply. Earlier this year, Chinese buying helped to prop up the market, but Hengli Petrochemical International Pte. Chief Executive Officer Janet Hong sees the nation’s demand subdued until at least mid-2026.

“No matter how much demand is going to come in, you just have a lot of supply,” Trafigura Group’s Chief Economist Saad Rahim said at the Financial Times Commodities Asia Summit in Singapore on Wednesday. “The path of least resistance for prices is likely down.”

US crude inventories expanded by 574,000 barrels last week, according to government data on Wednesday. Gasoline and distillate stockpiles also gained.

–With assistance from Yongchang Chin.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

©2025 Bloomberg L.P.