MARKET WATCH: Crude oil benchmarks gain on trade negotiation chatter

Crude oil futures prices gained on New York and London markets Nov. 7 amid growing optimism that US-China trade talks are nearing a partial agreement on tariff disputes.

The light, sweet crude contract for December on the New York Mercantile Exchange was up 80¢ to $57.15/bbl on Nov. 7. The January contract was up 77¢ to settle at $57.15/bbl.

Brent crude oil for January was up 55¢ to $62.29/bbl on London’s International Commodity Exchange. The February contract was up 52¢ to $61.41/bbl.

While details were not disclosed, a Chinese spokesman said Nov. 7 that the US and China have both agreed to reduce some tariffs on the other’s goods. Negotiations of Phase 1 of a deal reported in October are ongoing.

The NYMEX natural gas price for December fell about 6¢ to a rounded $2.77/MMbtu. The January contract was down almost 5¢ to a rounded $2.86/MMbtu.

Ultralow-sulfur diesel for December decreased less than a penny to $1.92/gal. The NYMEX reformulated gasoline blendstock for December gained just under 1¢ to a rounded $1.64/gal.

The gas oil contract for November was $583.25/tonne on Nov. 7, down $3.50.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ basket of crudes for Nov. 7 was $62.32/bbl, down 7¢ from the previous day.