SINGAPORE: Oil prices were little changed on Wednesday as investors awaited U.S. inventory data, while eyeing an upcoming meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Brent crude futures dipped 3 cents, or 0.05%, to $66.09 a barrel at 0711 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures edged down 8 cents, or 0.13%, at $63.09. Both contracts settled lower on Tuesday.
Trump and Putin are due to meet in Alaska on Friday to discuss ending Russia's war in Ukraine that has shaken oil markets since February 2022.
Oil investors are in a "wait-and-see mode" ahead of the meeting, said ING commodity strategists.
"The outcome could remove some of the sanction risk hanging over the market," the ING strategists added.
Investors also awaited further cues after an industry report showed U.S. crude stockpiles climbed last week.
Crude inventories in the United States, the world's biggest oil consumer, rose by 1.52 million barrels last week, market sources said, citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Tuesday. Gasoline inventories dropped while distillate inventories gained slightly.
Should the U.S. Energy Information Administration data later on Wednesday also show a decline, it could indicate that consumption during the summer driving season has peaked and refiners are easing back their runs. The driving season typically runs from the Memorial Day holiday at the end of May to the Labor Day holiday in early September.
Analysts polled by Reuters expect the EIA report to show crude inventories fell by about 300,000 barrels last week. Outlooks issued by OPEC and the EIA on Tuesday pointed to increased production this year which also weighed on prices. But both expect output in the U.S., the world's largest producer, to decline in 2026 while other regions will increase oil and natural gas production.
U.S. crude production will hit a record 13.41 million barrels per day in 2025 due to increases in well productivity, though lower oil prices will prompt output to fall in 2026, the EIA forecast in a monthly report.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' monthly report said global oil demand will rise by 1.38 million bpd in 2026, up 100,000 bpd from the previous forecast. Its 2025 projection was left unchanged.
The White House on Tuesday tempered the expectations for a quick Russia-Ukraine ceasefire deal, which may lead investors to reconsider an end to the war soon and any easing of sanctions on Russian supply, which had been supporting prices.
"Trump downplayed expectations of his meeting with President Putin ... However, expectations of additional sanctions on Russian crude continue to fall," ANZ senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes wrote in a note. - Reuters
