Oil prices witness cautious stability amid expectations of reduced supplies from Russia and India

Oil prices stabilized relatively during trading on Thursday, as markets awaited potential repercussions on India's imports of Russian crude, which could drive demand for supplies from alternative sources.

Brent crude futures rose by 29 cents, equivalent to an increase of 0.47%, to record $62.20 per barrel. Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures increased by 31 cents, or 0.53%, to reach $58.58 per barrel.

These slight increases came after both crude benchmarks touched their lowest levels since early May, primarily affected by escalating trade tensions between the United States and China.

In a separate development, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to halt his country's purchases of Russian oil, which constitutes nearly a third of India's crude imports.

In a practical indication, three informed sources told "Reuters" that some Indian refining companies have begun to gradually prepare to reduce their imports of Russian oil over the coming weeks.

Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at "A.J. Bell", commented on this development, saying: "This step is positive for oil prices, as it would reduce supply if India indeed stops buying Russian crude."

For its part, the Indian government, in a statement issued on Thursday, emphasized that New Delhi's priority remains ensuring energy price stability and supply availability, without directly mentioning President Trump's remarks.

On the other hand, Russia expressed confidence in the continuation of its strategic partnership with India in the energy sector, despite Western pressures and imposed sanctions.

These statements coincide with ongoing Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries, causing disruptions in the supply of petroleum products. The Russian Energy Minister announced that the country has postponed maintenance work at some refineries to meet market needs, following an attack on the Saratov refinery during the night.

Tamas Varga, an analyst at "PVM", explained that "the reduction of Russian crude and petroleum product supplies is likely to provide support to the market and is expected to form a barrier against prices falling below their low levels this year at $58.40 per barrel."

In a related context, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Pessen revealed that he informed his Japanese counterpart Katsunobu Kato of Washington's expectations that Tokyo would halt imports of Russian energy products, although Japan is not a major importer of Russian crude.

The British government also imposed a new package of sanctions targeting the Russian companies "Rosneft" and "Lukoil", along with several oil storage facilities and the "Shandong Yulong" refinery in China and 44 tankers used in what is known as the "shadow fleet" for transporting Russian oil, in addition to the Russian-owned "Nayara" energy company in India.