WTI oil prices fall as risks from Kazakhstan’s production freeze diminish

Crude oil prices in West Texas fell on Wednesday as pressure from geopolitical tensions and an expected build-up in US crude inventories outweighed the temporary halt in production at two major fields in Kazakhstan. March WTI fell 79 cents, or 1.31%, to $59.57 a barrel by 0008 GMT. The contract rose 90 cents, or 1.51%, in the previous session.

Brent Crude for March has not yet started trading on Wednesday, but in the previous session the contract gained 98 cents, or 1.53%, to $64.92.

Contracts rose after Kazakhstan, a member of the OPEC+ group of oil producers, temporarily halted production from the Tengiz and Korolev oil fields on “strong Chinese” economic data.

Oil production at the two Kazakh fields could be halted for another seven to 10 days after the shutdown on Sunday, three industry sources told Reuters.

The halt in oil production in Tengiz, one of the world’s largest oil fields, and Korolev, due to power distribution problems, is temporary. Instead, broader market pressure from geopolitics and the expected rise in U.S. crude inventories would continue, IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said on Wednesday.

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday there is “no turning back” on his goal of controlling Greenland. His earlier promise of new tariffs on a number of European countries if no deal is reached on Greenland risks lower economic growth. U.S. crude oil and gasoline inventories were expected to rise last week, while distillate stocks likely fell, a preliminary Reuters poll showed on Tuesday, ahead of Thursday’s Energy Information Administration data.