Crude oil futures traded higher on Monday morning despite ongoing uncertainties surrounding the US-China trade war.
At 9.54 am on Monday, July Brent oil futures were at $65.96, up by 0.24 per cent, and June crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $63.23, up by 0.33 per cent. May crude oil futures were trading at ₹5417 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹5396, up by 0.39 per cent, and June futures were trading at ₹5375 against the previous close of ₹5361, up by 0.26 per cent.
The US and China are engaged in a bitter trade war, impacting the price of commodities such as crude oil. Last week, the US President Donald Trump had stated that he had spoken to the Chinese President Xi Jinping on the topic. His comments had raised hopes on easing of tensions between the two economies.
However, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday he was not aware whether Trump had spoken to Xi Jinping. He had also stated that he was not aware of a direct talk between the US and China. Both the US and China are the major consumers of crude oil in the world market.
Meanwhile, market is waiting for the meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, known as OPEC+, next week. Market players feel that the meeting could take a decision to increase the production output of the member countries for the second consecutive month.
On Sunday, Trump asked Russia to stop its attacks in Ukraine. Speaking to reporters, he said he was disappointed that Russia has continued to attack Ukraine. His one-on-one meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the Vatican on Saturday had gone well, he said.
Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the US might abandon its attempts to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, if they do not make headway. Russia is one of the major producers of crude oil in the global market.
May natural gas futures were trading at ₹270.30 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹267.10, up by 1.20 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), May turmeric (farmer polished) contracts were trading at ₹13974 in the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹14228, down p by 1.79 per cent.
May jeera futures were trading at ₹22455 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹22545, down by 0.40 per cent.
Published on April 28, 2025