Oil Prices Rise After Israeli Strike In Qatar, Trump’s Threats Of Fresh Russia Sanctions

Oil prices rose on Wednesday on rising geopolitical tensions as Israel attacked Hamas leadership in Qatar and U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly urged European leaders to raise tariffs on buyers of Russian crude.

Benchmark Brent crude prices rose over 0.9% to $67 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate prices gained 59 cents to $63.19 per barrel at 2.58 a.m. ET. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits about the United States Oil Fund (USO) was in the ‘bullish’ territory at the time of writing.

Both contracts gained on Tuesday, after Israel carried out an airstrike in Qatar, a major non-NATO U.S. ally. However, Trump said he was “not happy” with Israel’s conduct, and the U.S. assured Qatar that such an attack would not take place again.

"The modest reaction in crude oil prices to this news, along with scepticism regarding U.S. President Trump's claims about potentially ramping up sanctions on Russian oil ... leaves crude oil vulnerable to lower prices," IG market analyst Tony Sycamore warned, according to a Reuters News report.

According to a Bloomberg News report, Trump has threatened to impose sweeping new tariffs on India and China to pressure President Vladimir Putin into initiating peace negotiations, provided the European Union follows suit.

Trump has already imposed 50% levies on India for its purchases of Russian crude. However, any similar move against China will likely invite retaliation from Beijing at a time when Trump seeks an in-person meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Further capping gains of oil prices was the dour outlook by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, which projected oil production to far outstrip demand for the rest of the year and in 2026.

Oil traders are eagerly awaiting the Federal Reserve’s decision on benchmark interest rates next week. The U.S. central bank is widely expected to deliver a 25-basis-point cut on Sept. 17.

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