Oil steadied after an early drop, with talks to end the war in Ukraine and a lowering of the US credit rating in focus.

Brent fell as much as 1.1% to below $65 a barrel before recovering, while West Texas Intermediate traded near $62. US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will speak by phone later on Monday, although the Russian leader may believe he has the upper hand in the fighting and therefore be unlikely to make concessions.

Meanwhile, Moody’s Ratings stripped the US government of its top credit rating late on Friday, adding to concerns about the outlook for global growth. The downgrade, which trailed the other major rating agencies, risks reinforcing Wall Street’s growing worries over the US sovereign bond market and a slowing economy.

Crude prices rebounded over the previous two weeks on increased uncertainty over the progress of US-Iranian talks and following Israel’s strikes on Houthi-held areas of Yemen that have elicited promises of retaliation. Futures are still down more than 10% this year as Trump’s trade war threatens demand and OPEC+ returns shuttered production into a market that is forecast to be oversupplied later this year.

Prices

  • Brent for July settlement was little changed at $65.45 a barrel at 7:33 a.m. in Singapore.

  • WTI for June delivery was stable at $62.50 a barrel.

. Read more on Markets by NDTV Profit.Brent fell as much as 1.1% to below $65 a barrel before recovering, while West Texas Intermediate traded near $62.  Read MoreMarkets, Business, Notifications, Bloomberg 

​NDTV Profit