Crude oil futures traded lower on Tuesday morning amid concerns over a global economic slowdown due to US tariffs on other countries.
At 9.57 am on Tuesday, May Brent oil futures were at $69.25, down by 0.04 per cent, and April crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $65.93, down by 0.15 per cent.
March crude oil futures were trading at ₹5766 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹5778, down by 0.21 per cent, and April futures were trading at ₹5768 against the previous close of ₹5776, down by 0.14 per cent.
Recently the US President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canada and Mexico, and later paused it for a few days. China retaliated with its own measures after Trump decided to impose 20 per cent tariffs on China. These developments have led to the fears in the market over a possible global economic slowdown.
China, which is one of the major consumers of crude oil in the global market, has been showing weak economic growth in the recent months. The latest consumer and producer price inflation data released by National Bureau of Statistics of China showed deflationary trend in China. A slowdown in Chinese economy would impact demand for the commodities such as crude oil in the global market.
The Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak had stated recently that the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, known as OPEC+, could reverse the decision to increase the production output in case of any market imbalances. OPEC+ had recently announced to increase production output from April. Russia is one of the major oil producers in the global market.
March natural gas futures were trading at ₹388.70 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹394.20, down by 1.40 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), April jeera contracts were trading at ₹20650 in the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹20610, up by 0.19 per cent.
April turmeric (farmer polished) futures were trading at ₹11314 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Tuesday against the previous close of ₹11384, down by 0.61 per cent.