Oil prices advanced on Friday on renewed trade optimism between the United States and China.
Brent crude oil gained 83 cents or 1.3 percent to trade at $63.27 per barrel as of 10:05 a.m. while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 85 cents or 1.4 percent to $60.76.
The positive momentum was triggered by easing tensions between the world’s two largest oil consumers. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is scheduled to meet China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng in Switzerland on May 10 to discuss potential resolutions to ongoing trade disputes.
The meeting is seen as a significant step toward restarting formal negotiations that have disrupted global oil demand projections.
“If the two set a date to start formal trade negotiations and agree to ratchet down their current steep tariffs against each other while talks carry on, markets will get a breather and crude could stack on another $2 to $3 per barrel,” said Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights.
Stronger-than-expected Chinese export data also boosted investor sentiment and pushed crude benchmarks toward weekly gains.
Exports from China rose faster than expected in April while the decline in imports narrowed, suggesting a potential stabilization in the country’s external trade environment.
Crude oil imports into China for the same period increased by 7.5 percent year-on-year, driven by stockpiling activities among state-owned refiners during maintenance cycles.
In a separate development, the United Kingdom announced a “breakthrough” trade agreement with the United States, involving tariff reductions on select U.S. imports.
The announcement, jointly made by President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Keir Starmer, further improved risk appetite in the energy markets.
Meanwhile, market participants continued to monitor supply-side dynamics. A Reuters survey reported that OPEC oil production slightly declined in April due to reduced output in Libya, Venezuela and Iraq, offsetting scheduled increases.
OPEC+ is expected to move ahead with its planned production ramp-up, which could influence near-term pricing trends.
Also, the United States imposed new sanctions on a small Chinese refinery for violating restrictions on Iranian oil purchases.
With multiple geopolitical and macroeconomic variables aligning to support crude markets, analysts project a potential continuation of the rally, pending further clarity on trade negotiations and global inventory data.
