Oil Flat After Rosneft Sanctions Offset Demand Fears

(Bloomberg) -- Oil ended Tuesday’s session flat after American sanctions on Russia’s largest oil producer helped to erase losses driven by lingering concerns that coronavirus will cut demand.

The U.S. sanctioned a unit of Russia’s Rosneft PJSC for maintaining ties with Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro and its state-run oil company. The restrictions come with a three-month wind-down period that expires May 20.

“These sanctions will be supportive for prices,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group. “Ultimately, Russia does not want to be on the wrong side of the energy trade.”

The sanctions on Rosneft represent the latest effort by the U.S. government to increase pressure on Nicolas Maduro’s regime. Rosneft called the sanctions illegal and ungrounded. The tensions also come at a time when oil markets are awaiting a response from OPEC+ on production cuts. Russia, one of the largest exporters in the coalition, has been reluctant to curb oil output past the current production cuts.

Prices have lost about 15% since the beginning of the year on fears the coronavirus outbreak will squeeze global demand for crude.

While China reported the lowest number of new cases since announcing a change in its method of detection last week, the outbreak continues to weigh on commodities. ING Bank NV cut its Brent and WTI oil forecasts, with oil demand set to remain weak due to the outbreak, analyst Warren Patterson wrote in a report.

West Texas Intermediate futures for March delivery settled at $52.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. There was no settlement Monday due to the Presidents’ Day holiday in the U.S.

Brent for April delivery rose 8 cents to $57.75 on the ICE Futures Europe Exchange putting the premium over WTI’s contract for the same month at $5.46.

Other oil-market news:

• Gasoline futures rose 2% to $1.6148 a gallon.
• Saudi Arabia is cutting output while retaining its share in the global oil market, Petromatrix said in emailed report.
• Fighters loyal to eastern Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar shelled the port in the capital, forcing a halt to shipping and providing an ominous backdrop for the resumption of United Nations-brokered talks on the country’s conflict.
• Glencore Plc joined rivals in reporting a blockbuster result in oil trading in 2019, with the world’s largest commodity merchant saying it enjoyed a “stand out” year.
• China’s commercial crude oil stockpiles at ports rose to 28.44m tons in week of Feb. 13, according to a note posted on official WeChat account of industry consultant Oilchem China.

--With assistance from Grant Smith.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Jackie Davalos in New York at jdavalos10@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
James Herron at jherron9@bloomberg.net
Catherine Traywick, Carlos Caminada