Crude oil prices fell for the second consecutive session in mid-European trading today, Wednesday, August 27, as markets monitor developments related to the Russian-Ukrainian war and the assessment of tariffs imposed on India, the world’s third-largest crude consumer, amid anticipation of today’s official inventory report. Nymex crude fell by about 0.30%, trading at $63.06 a barrel, while Brent crude traded at $67.00 a barrel, down about 0.33%.
The American Petroleum Institute report, issued yesterday, Tuesday, showed a decline in inventories of 974,000 barrels in the past week ending August 22, compared to expectations of a 1.7 million barrel decline. In detail, gasoline inventories decreased by about 2.06 million barrels, while distillate inventories, which include heating fuel and diesel, decreased by about 1.488 million barrels. Today, markets are awaiting official inventory figures from the US Energy Information Administration, amid expectations of a 1.7 million barrel decline in inventories last week. Starting Wednesday, tariffs of 50% on some Indian exports will take effect, following Washington’s earlier announcement that it would penalize India for purchasing Russian oil. Investors are monitoring the impact of these tariffs on Russian oil flows to the world’s largest crude oil consumer, with estimates from the Global Trade Research Institute (GTRI) that the tariffs imposed on India could reduce its exports by more than 40%.