Oil prices broadly stable as Trump-Xi meeting yields talk of cooperation and stability
Oil prices were broadly stable on Thursday after a Chinese readout from a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed cooperation and stability.
Both leaders agreed in a meeting that the Strait of Hormuz must be open for the free flow of energy, according to a White House readout.
Easing from an earlier high of $107.13 a barrel, Brent crude oil futures were up 30 cents, or 0.3%, at $105.93 at 1005 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures lost 15 cents, or 0.2%, to $100.87.
Both contracts fell on Wednesday as investors worried about possible U.S. interest rate hikes as higher fuel prices spur inflationary pressures. Brent crude futures lost more than $2 a barrel, while WTI futures dropped more than $1.
President Xi expressed interest in purchasing more U.S. oil to reduce China's dependence on the Strait of Hormuz, according to the White House. China has not imported any U.S. oil since May 2025 due to a 20% import tariff imposed during the trade war.
The Strait of Hormuz, a key energy gateway, has been largely shut since the Iran war broke out at the end of February.
Iran, meanwhile, appears to have tightened its control over the strait, cutting deals with Iraq and Pakistan to ship oil and liquefied natural gas from the region.
A Chinese supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude sailed through the strait on Wednesday after being stranded in the Gulf for more than two months.
A Panama-flagged crude oil tanker managed by Japanese refining group Eneos <5020.T> has also passed through the strait, ship-tracking data from LSEG showed on Thursday, the second instance of a Japan-linked oil ship making it through.
Global oil supply will fall short of total demand this year as inventories are drained at an unprecedented pace, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday.
In the United States, crude inventories fell by 4.3 million barrels to 452.9 million barrels for the week ended May 8 on rising exports, the EIA said, although distillates stockpiles rose, in opposition to expectations of a draw. [EIA/S]
