Oil prices were little changed on Tuesday during a volatile trading session, as markets balanced the impact of Western sanctions on Russian crude against forecasts of a global supply surplus next year.
Brent crude slipped 9 cents, or 0.14%, to $64.11 a barrel by 11:27 a.m. EDT (1628 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) inched up 6 cents, or 0.1%, to $59.97. Both benchmarks had traded almost 1% lower earlier in the day.
Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group, said the market is stuck in a narrow range and is waiting for fresh inventory data before making a decisive move.
Traders are now looking ahead to U.S. oil stockpile numbers from the American Petroleum Institute, expected at around 4:30 p.m. EDT.
The U.S. Treasury said sanctions imposed in October on Rosneft and Lukoil are already cutting into Russia’s oil revenue and will likely restrict export volumes over time. MUFG analyst Soojin Kim noted that markets are weighing the expected global surplus against the tightening effects of U.S. sanctions on Russian supply.
A senior White House official said President Donald Trump is open to signing new Russia sanctions as long as he keeps final authority over how they are enforced. Trump added on Sunday that Republicans are preparing legislation targeting countries that continue to do business with Russia, with Iran possibly included.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Novorossiysk port resumed operations on Sunday after a two-day shutdown caused by a Ukrainian missile and drone attack. The port, along with the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal, handles around 2.2 million barrels per day — roughly 2% of global supply. The outage pushed crude prices up more than 2% on Friday.
Looking ahead, Goldman Sachs expects oil prices to trend lower through 2026 due to a wave of new supply keeping the market in surplus. However, the bank said Brent could climb above $70 a barrel in 2026 or 2027 if Russian production declines more sharply.
