Crude oil prices fall for the second consecutive week in the midst of a tariff war

Published at: 11/04/2025 05:55 PM

International oil prices will fall for the second consecutive week, due to investor concern about a possible recession, caused by the tariff war caused by the United States, and China's responses, international media report.

Brent crude fell 0.39% to $63.08 per barrel of oil, starting at 1:12 p.m. GMT this Friday (9:12 a.m. Venezuela time); meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 0.50% to $59.77.

In addition, Brent and WTI are forecast to fall weekly, by 3.8 and 3.5%, respectively, and both lost around 11% of their value over the past week.

Brent fell below $60 this week, its biggest drop since February 2021. “Retaliation from China, and increased tariffs from the United States, weigh on market attitude and dragged down oil prices even further,” said financial services analyst Giovanni Staunovo.

For its part, China announced the imposition of 125% tariffs against US imports starting this Saturday, April 12, in response to the 145% trade taxes that Washington announced this Thursday, 10.

A protracted dispute between the world's two largest economies could reduce the volume of world trade and impact trade routes, which would reduce demand for oil.

“Although the implementation of some tariffs, excluding those for China, was postponed for 90 days; the damage to the market had already been done, leaving it difficult for prices to regain stability,” argued one of the executives of Saxo Bank of Denmark, Ole Hansen.

The Washington Department of Energy itself lowered its forecasts for global economic growth, and warned that tariffs will weigh heavily on hydrocarbon prices, in addition to reducing projected demand for crude oil by the United States and the rest of the world.

Mazo News Team