Crude oil closes: OPEC + weighs Russia's exemption from production restrictions U.S. oil closed lower but rose 9.5% this month

News on June 1, oil prices fell on Tuesday after some members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries were considering exempting Russia from oil production targets
.
This month closed sharply higher
on energy supply concerns.

July futures for West Texas Intermediate fell 40 cents, or 0.
4 percent, to settle at $114.
67 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up 9.
5 percent
for the month.
ICE Futures Exchange July Brent crude futures rose $1.
17, or 1%, to settle at $122.
84 a barrel, up 12.
4%
for the month.

Gasoline prices rose 1.
6 percent to $4.
08 a gallon in June and heating oil rose 2.
2 percent to $
4.
091 a gallon in June.
Natural gas prices fell 6.
7% in July to close at $
8.
145 per million British heat.

Such an exemption could clear the way
for Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other OPEC members to significantly increase crude production.
Russia is the de facto leader of the OPEC+ group of Central African OPEC countries, which agreed last year to slowly lift production cuts implemented after the start of the pandemic in 2020 in monthly increments
.

So far, OPEC+ has rejected requests
from the United States and other countries to accelerate production increases.
OPEC+ is scheduled to hold its monthly meeting on Thursday to discuss its production plans
.

Oil prices rose in early trading on Tuesday, and investors returned on Monday after the Memorial Day holiday to hear the news that EU leaders had finalized an agreement to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine by cutting demand for energy assets in the warring nation Ukraine
.

The watered-down embargo covers Russian oil imports by sea, with a temporary exemption for oil imported through pipelines, which will allow Hungary to board the ship
.
The EU says the deal covers more than two-thirds of oil imports from Russia and will cut Russia's crude imports by 90 percent by the end of the year
.

While the move targets Russian supply, demand from China is expected to be boosted in the near term, as the country is a key buyer of Russian crude and the world's largest importer of crude," said Robbie Smith, global research and analysis manager at Schneider Electric.
Robbie Fraser said
in a note.

New York crude hit an more than 11-week high on Friday as inventories remained low as the summer driving season kicked off over Memorial Day weekend
.
According to the U.
S.
Energy Information Administration, the average retail price of regular gasoline in the U.
S.
is $4.
59 per gallon, the highest inflation-adjusted (real) price
since 2012.