Oil prices jump as trade war threat eases and US decision on Syria imminent

Crude oil prices are bounding higher this morning, extending yesterday's steep gains, as geopolitical tensions ease.

Global markets were trading in positive territory today after China's President Xi Jinping vowed to continue opening the Chinese economy in a speech today, which bolstered oil prices.

At the time of writing, the global benchmark Brent crude was up 1.27 per cent at $69.52 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) prices rose 1.34 per cent to $64.27 per barrel.

Oil prices rallied more than two per cent on Monday after declining by about the same amount on Friday.

"It’s a bit of a see-saw life in the oil market at the moment with traders having to be on their toes even more than usual," said Malcolm Graham-Wood, founding partner of HydroCarbon Capital.

"Yesterday crude oil rallied sharply as it was tariff war off and Syria war back on which switched attention back to geopolitical problems in the Middle East. This morning that trend is continuing with both grades up nearly a dollar and Brent knocking on the $70 door again," he said.

Investors are waiting to see how the conflict in Syria will unfold after Trump promised to make a decision on whether he will attack "very quickly". Washington plans to bring forward a vote in the United Nations today

"Investors may start pricing in a much higher risk premium," said Hussein Sayed, chief market strategist at FXTM.

"So far, it seems the conflict in Syria has no impact on the supply from the Middle East, but if the battle spills outside the Syrian border, I expect another $10 risk premium to be added to the current price."

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