It’s official: President Donald Trump has announced sweeping tariffs on friends and foes alike, with the minimum rate at 10% and higher versions of between 20% and as much as 49%. Oil prices took a dive after the announcement, predictions of a grim economic future multiplied, and countries around the world vowed to retaliate. It’s a game of tariffs with a twist: energy imports were exempted from the tariffs.
Trump’s threat of penalties on Russia has added to a more positive short-term outlook for prices, with key timespreads pointing to a tighter market and derivatives tied to the vital North Sea benchmark surging. At the same time, WTI briefly entered overbought territory on its nine-day relative strength index for the first time since Trump took office, signaling that the past three weeks’ rally may be set to pause