Oil prices did not move much on Thursday. Trading was calm because many U.S. traders were off for the Thanksgiving holiday. Brent oil for January was up just a tiny bit at sixty two dollars and sixty four cents a barrel. WTI crude also inched up to fifty eight dollars and eighty one cents a barrel.
Investors are watching a possible peace plan for the Ukraine war. A U.S. representative will visit Moscow next week to talk about it. If the plan moves forward and leads to a ceasefire, some limits on Russian energy exports might be relaxed. That could bring more oil into a market that already has plenty of supply.
Fresh data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration also showed that American crude stockpiles rose by two point eight million barrels last week. Markets had expected almost no change. This rise in inventories held back oil prices after a brief jump. More supply and rising production have created worries that the world may have more oil than it needs through next year and into 2026.
Analysts at ING said the oil market is currently caught between two forces. One is the chance of progress in Russia Ukraine talks which could add more supply. The other is the hope that the U.S. Federal Reserve may cut interest rates in December. Lower rates can boost economic activity and help oil demand.
Traders are also waiting for the OPEC plus meeting this weekend. ING expects the group to keep production levels the same. They said the overall outlook has not changed much since the last meeting.