WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices were slightly lower on Thursday after three days of gains. Benchmark Brent crude futures fell half a percent to $72.13 a barrel in European trade, while WTI crude futures were down 0.3 percent at $69.76. Both benchmarks rose around 1 percent on Wednesday.
A surprise build in U.S. crude stocks weighed on prices. Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration for the week ending July 25 revealed that crude oil inventories in the U.S. rose by 7.698 million barrels.
Traders were also reacting to a flurry of trade and tariff-related announcements from U.S. President Donald Trump on the eve of his Friday deadline.
These include Trump's trade deal with South Korea, his announcement of a 25 percent tariff on all goods imported from India, and the imposition of 50 percent tariffs on Brazil, the highest levy President Trump has applied to another country in his current term.
Investors are looking for more clarity on the nature of new tariffs and weighed the supply risks that could emerge from possible sanctions on Russia.
On Wednesday, the United States has announced the imposition of more than 115 new sanctions on more than 115 Iran-linked individuals, entities and vessels, stepping up the Trump administration's 'maximum pressure' campaign after bombing Iranian nuclear sites in June.
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