Oil prices edged higher to a two-week high on Tuesday on forecasts for less US oil production as well as renewed Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.
Brent crude futures rose by 57 cents or 0.8 per cent to settle at $70.15 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 40 cents or 0.6 per cent to $68.33 per barrel.
The US will produce less oil in 2025 than previously expected as declining oil prices have prompted producers to slow activity this year, according to the latest Energy Information Administration (EIA) outlook.
Production averaged just over 13.4 million barrels per day in Q2, an all-time high, but is expected to decline slightly through 2026.
The EIA expects average U.S. crude production to hold at 13.4 million barrels per day for both 2025 and 2026, it said in the July Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO).
The US agency raised its 2025 Brent forecast by $3 to $69 per barrel, citing a spike in geopolitical risk from the mid-June Iran nuclear conflict. However, it expects that will be short-lived with inventories building, the agency sees Brent falling to $58 per barrel in 2026.
Meanwhile, Red Sea attacks have forced vessels carrying oil, liquefied natural gas and other energy products to travel long distances to avoid the region, boosting energy costs.
Reuters reported that three seafarers on the Liberian-flagged, Greek-operated bulk carrier Eternity C were killed in a drone and speedboat attack off Yemen, the second incident in a day after months of calm.
US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he will announce a 50 per cent tariff on copper later in the day, aiming to boost US production of a metal critical to electric vehicles, military hardware, the power grid and many consumer goods.
Copper futures soared as much as 17 per cent on Tuesday, their largest intraday gain in at least three decades.
This comes amid plans by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) to raise production by 548,000 barrels per day in August.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) estimated that crude oil inventories in the US rose sharply this week, gaining an additional 7.1 million barrels in the week ending July 4. The official data by the EIA will be released later on Wednesday.