WTI advances on sentiment improvement as Saudi-Russia talks easing fears

WTI crude oil is making gains after dropping 5% on Wednesday as a result of a risk-off impulse. As a result of the Swiss government supporting Credit Suisse, market sentiment improved.

The American crude oil benchmark, supported by a risk-on impulse, recovers after falling to a 15-month low at about 65.72. With support from US stocks and oil prices, major American institutions are intervening to assist First Republic Bank.

WTI is currently trading at 68.28, 0.08% higher than when it started. Also, news that Saudi Arabia and Russia met to discuss increasing market stability supports the price of WTI. Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, the Saudi energy minister, and Alexander Novak, the deputy prime minister of Russia, met in the Saudi capital to talk about the efforts being made by the OPEC+ group to keep the market balanced.

Representatives from OPEC and its partners told Reuters that they expect the market to recover and that the drop in oil prices this week was caused by financial concerns rather than any imbalance between supply and demand.

WTI fell due to the turbulence in the financial markets. Swiss authorities backing up Credit Suisse (CS) and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen assuring lawmakers that the US banking system remained sound were a tailwind for WTI.

This week, OPEC and the International Energy Agency (IEA) have both predicted an increase in oil demand, but the market is still being affected by concerns about excess supply.

The IEA commented that stockpiles in developed countries hit an 18-month high, while Russian output stayed around familiar levels in February.