DTN Oil Update
Oil Futures Rise After Trump Pauses Tariffs
HOUSTON (DTN) -- Oil futures contracts rose Friday morning following the announcement that the Trump administration postponed for one month the additional tariff that was imposed on some imported goods from Canada and Mexico Thursday, March 6.
The NYMEX WTI futures contracts for April delivery rose by $1.23 to $67.59 bbl while the front-month ICE Brent edged up by $1.28 to $70.74 bbl. The RBOB futures contract for April delivery rose by $0.0334 to $2.1346 gallon and the April ULSD futures contract increased by $0.0265 to $2.2503 gallon.
The U.S. Dollar Index fell by .43% to 103.60 against a basket of foreign currencies.
Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump paused tariffs on imported goods from Mexico and Canada until April 2. The temporary pause applies to imports covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement. However, the suspension on trade tariffs excluded the additional 10% tariff levied on China on March 5.
This is the second time Trump has postponed tariffs since he levied them on Mexico, China and Canada in February, causing uncertainty and downward pressure in oil futures market, which reached their lower levels since November this week.
Meanwhile, China's Customs Administration reported that exports rose 2.3% in the first two months of 2025 to $539.9bn, compared to the same period of last year. This was below market expectation of 5.9%. "With tariffs coming into effect in February and March, it's likely that the impact will be seen gradually in the coming months. That is, unless a deal is reached to avoid or delay tariffs," Lynn Song, chief economist, for ING Research said in a note.
The Trump administration has implemented a 20% tax on imported goods from China to date.
In domestic economic data, the Bureau of Labor Statistics Friday morning reported total non-farm payroll employment rose by 151,000 in February, below market expectations of an increase of 170,000. The data show the unemployment rate at 4.1%, up by 0.1% from January, and the number of unemployed jumped by 203,000 to 7.1 million.
In February, average hourly earnings were up by 10 cents or 0.3% from January to $35.93 for all employees on private payrolls, in line with market expectations.
