Crude oil futures remained steady on Monday morning on the prospects of possible peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.

At 9.57 am on Monday, April Brent oil futures were at $74.82, up by 0.11 per cent, and April crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $70.76, up by 0.07 per cent.

February crude oil futures were trading at ₹6143 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹6149, down by 0.10 per cent, and March futures were trading at ₹6162 against the previous close of ₹6165, down by 0.05 per cent.

Stating that he could meet the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, very soon, Donald Trump, US President, said on Sunday he is working hard to bring peace. He believes that Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskiy, President of Ukraine, want to end the war.

Media reports said that peace talks to end the war between Russia and Ukraine may take place in Saudi Arabia. However, there was no clarity on the participants.

Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said Ukraine and Europe would be part of any real negotiation to end the war. Speaking to CBS, he said a negotiation process had not yet begun in earnest.

Russia is one of the major producers of crude oil in the global market. The recent US and European sanctions on Russia has impacted the crude oil supply to the world market. An end to Russia-Ukraine war could help in lifting sanctions on Russia. This in turn could help increase supplies to the market.

There are also signals of possible increase in supplies to the world market from Iraq. Media reports said that the president of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region has indicated that oil exports from the region could resume next month. Oil exports from the region have been stopped for nearly two years.

February natural gas futures were trading at ₹315.40 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹323.80, down by 2.59 per cent.

On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), March jeera contracts were trading at ₹21370 in the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹21055, up by 1.50 per cent.

March castorseed futures were trading at ₹6250 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹6273, down by 0.37 per cent.

Published on February 17, 2025