By Gina Lee
Investing.com – Oil was mixed on Thursday morning in Asia after both France and Iran said they were closer to an agreement to salvage Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. This offset worries about the situation in Ukraine.
Brent oil futures were down 0.60% to $94.24 by 11:07 PM ET (4:07 AM GMT) and WTI futures fell 0.80% to $92.91. Both Brent and WTI futures stayed above the $90 mark, however.
"Positive news from the U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations is providing much-needed relief to global oil prices, as the possibility of new crude supplies reduces the supply-demand deficit," Claudio Galimberti, senior vice president at Rystad Energy, told Reuters.
On Wednesday, France said it was just days away from reviving Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and that it was now up to Iran to make the political choice. However, Tehran appealed for Western powers to be "realistic."
Meanwhile, Wednesday’s U.S crude oil supply data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed a build of 1.121 million barrels in the week to Feb. 11. Forecasts prepared by Investing.com had predicted a 1.572-million-barrel draw, while a 4.756-million-barrel-draw was recorded during the previous week.
Crude oil supply data from the American Petroleum Institute, released on Tuesday, showed a draw of 1.076 million barrels.
In recent weeks, investors have also been keeping an eye on Russia's threatening posture toward Ukraine, as concerns that any supply disruptions from the major producer in an already tight global market could push oil prices to $100 a barrel.