Oil prices erased gains earned earlier on Tuesday as the U.S. production increase and concerns over weakening demand kept traders on edge. Brent crude futures had risen to $49.60 on Tuesday morning, but retreated to $49.37 per barrel later in the day. Likewise, U.S. WTI had risen to $46.66 per barrel, but fell back to $46.46 as the session wore on.
On Monday Saudi Arabia reconfirmed its commitment to doing “whatever it takes” to raising oil prices, which have been plagued by oversupply for the past two years. One such measure may include extending OPEC’s production cuts, not only through 2017, but even into 2018 if necessary.
Asian Stock Markets Trade Lower
After initial rallies following Emmanuel Macron’s win in the French election on Sunday, Asian stock markets stalled on Tuesday as traders took profits and waited to see whether the ECB will scale back its quantitative easing measures. ECB chief Mario Draghi will be addressing the issue in a speech at the Dutch House of Representatives on Wednesday.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.1 percent while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was also down 01. Percent.
The dollar traded at 113.27 yen during Tuesday’s Asian session while the Australian dollar dropped to $0.7364, a four-month low.