2025.03.1120:10:00UTC+00Oil Futures Settle Modestly Higher

Oil prices climbed higher on Tuesday, bouncing back fairly well after dropping to six-month lows in the previous session.

A weak dollar contributed significantly to the rise in oil prices, although concerns about the outlook for growth and a drop in oil demand capped the upside.

Possible drop in oil supplies following the Trump administration's warning that it would enforce sanctions on Iranian crude production contributed as well to the rise in oil prices.

The dollar index fell to103.25 today, the lowest level in about five months.

West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April closed higher by $0.22 or about 0.3% at $66.25 a barrel.

Brent crude futures settled at $69.56 a barrel today, gaining $0.28 or about 0.4%.

Oil gave up some gains after the U.S. President announced an additional 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports from Canada, bringing the total tariff on those products to 50%.

Investors now await weekly oil reports from the American Petroleum Institute (API) and U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The API report is due later today, while the EIA is scheduled to release its inventory data Wednesday morning.

A Reuters poll said crude stockpiles in the U.S. likely rose last week, while distillate and gasoline inventories likely fell.