The announcement of anticipated talks between Israeli and Hamas negotiators seemed to shift market sentiment, tempering the heightened volatility observed in recent weeks when threats of escalation drove brisk trading in oil derivatives.
Data showed that the US imported an average of 6.4 million barrels per day of crude last week, representing a 16.3% increase from the week before. Meanwhile, oil producers in the US churned out a historically high level of output during the reporting week, hitting 13.5 million barrels per day.