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Oil prices fall as US tariffs loom, OPEC+ to increase output

Oil prices dropped on Thursday, after rising 3% the previous day, as investors were wary that higher U.S. Tariffs could be reinstated and cause a drop in fuel demand. Major producers are also expected to announce a production increase.

Brent crude futures dropped 53 cents or 0.77% to $68.58 per barrel at 0536 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude fell 51 cents or 0.76% to $66.94 per barrel.

The two contracts reached their highest levels in a week on Wednesday, as Iran suspended its cooperation with the U.N. Nuclear Watchdog, raising fears that the long-running dispute over the Middle East's nuclear program could again escalate into an armed conflict. Meanwhile, the U.S. signed a preliminary deal with Vietnam.

There is still increasing uncertainty about U.S. Trade Policy, as the 90-day suspension of the application of higher tariffs ends on July 9, without any new deals being made with large trading partners like the European Union or Japan.

OPEC+, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, and its allies, such as Russia, will also likely agree to increase their production by 411,000 barrels a day (bpd) when they meet this weekend.

ING analysts wrote in a Thursday note that, given the uncertainty surrounding both events and the upcoming Independence Day holiday on July 4th in the U.S. "market participants are unlikely to want to take too much risk over the long weekend in the U.S.," they said.

A private sector survey on Thursday showed that service activity in China, which is the world's largest oil importer, had expanded at its slowest rate in nine months.

In June,

As demand declined, new export orders also decreased.

surprise build

The rise in U.S. crude oil inventories has also raised concerns about demand in the world's largest crude consumer.

Energy Information Administration reported on Wednesday that domestic crude stocks rose by 3.8 millions barrels, to 419,000,000 barrels. In a poll, analysts had predicted a drop of 1.8 millions barrels.

The weekly gasoline demand dropped to 8,6 million barrels a day, causing concern about the consumption during peak summer driving in the United States.

Analysts said that the market will closely monitor the release of Thursday's key U.S. employment report to determine the timing and depth of Federal Reserve interest rate reductions in the second half this year.

Lower interest rates would spur economic activity and, in turn, increase oil demand.

Analysts caution that there is no correlation with the government data. A report of private payrolls on Wednesday showed the first contraction in two years. (Reporting from Siyi Liu and Nicole Jao, in Singapore; editing by Christian Schmollinger).

(source: Reuters)