WTI Crude Oil Prices Weaken After the Release of API Report

Early on Wednesday, WTI crude oil has slid lower despite expectations that the US and China are getting close to signing the phase one trade deal. At the time of writing, WTI crude oil is trading at around $58.24 per barrel.

WTI crude oil prices have come under pressure following the release of the API report on Tuesday. According to the report, US crude inventories climbed 2.6 million barrels higher during the previous week, going against analyst expectations which were for a decline by 418k barrels instead.

US President Donald Trump commented that the US and China are in the final stages of negotiations towards the interim trade deal, but there is still some tension on the issue of Hong Kong protests. Top officials held phone discussions earlier on Tuesday, and according to official statements, the talks made good progress.

In addition to updates about the trade war, crude oil is also expected to trade cautious in the coming days in anticipation of the OPEC meeting. Markets are hoping for OPEC and its allies to announce an extension of curbs in crude production until mid-2020.