Oil prices slid about 2% on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump softened threats against Greenland and Iran, and as investors assessed the supply-demand outlook.

Brent futures fell $1.01, or 1.6%, to $64.23 a barrel at 11:26 a.m. EDT (1626 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 96 cents, or 1.6%, to $59.66 a barrel, headed for its lowest close since January 15.

Trump said he had secured total and permanent U.S. access to Greenland in a deal with NATO, whose head said allies would have to step up their commitment to Arctic security to ward off threats from Russia and China.

Trump also backed off tariff threats and ruled out taking Greenland by force, moderating a stance that had caused a rupture in transatlantic ties.

“There is a deflation of risk premium related to the Greenland debacle and Iran supply risk has also been reduced,” said Ole Hansen, chief commodity analyst at Saxo Bank.

Trump said he hoped there would be no further U.S. military action in Iran, but added the U.S. would act if Tehran resumed its nuclear program.

Iran, operating under sanctions, is the third biggest crude producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) organization behind Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

With less tension around Greenland and Iran, oil prices should hold at around $60 a barrel, said Tony Sycamore, an analyst with online broker IG.

Russia and Ukraine

Trump called for an end to the war in Ukraine, and reported “good” talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Davos.

U.S. and Ukrainian officials have spent weeks in shuttle diplomacy. Trump has pressured Kyiv to secure peace after nearly four years of war, despite few signs Moscow wants to stop fighting. A deal to bring peace to Ukraine and lift sanctions on Russia, the world’s third-biggest crude producer, could reduce oil prices by making more fuel available on global markets.

The French navy intercepted a Russian tanker in the Mediterranean suspected of being part of a shadow fleet that enables Russia to export oil despite sanctions.

Russian oil output fell 0.8% to 10.28 million barrels per day (bpd) last year, around a tenth of global production, according to data published on Thursday.

In Venezuela, another sanctioned member of OPEC, trading house Vitol is preparing to export Venezuelan fuel oil under a U.S.-backed deal following the capture of Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro, three sources close to the decision said.

Boosting oil flows from Venzuela could reduce oil prices.

Another factor weighing on oil prices was a slight worsening in forecasts for European corporate health. European firms are expected to report a 4.2% drop in 2025 fourth-quarter earnings, on average, according to LSEG I/B/E/S data, slightly worse than ‌the 4.1% decrease analysts expected a week ago.

Amin Nasser, chief executive of Saudi Arabia’s Aramco, the world’s biggest oil producer, said global oil glut predictions are seriously exaggerated as demand growth remains strong and global oil stocks are depleted.

US Oil Inventories

The market is waiting for a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) at noon. Analysts expect a 1.1 million barrel increase in U.S. crude stocks during the week ended January 16. On Wednesday, market sources said the American Petroleum Institute trade group reported a 3.0-million-barrel build. [EIA/S] [API/S]

EIA and API released their storage reports a day later than usual due to the U.S. Martin Luther King Jr holiday on Monday.

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(Reporting by Scott DiSavino in New York and Anna Hirtenstein in London. Additional reporting by Sam Li in Beijing and Siyi Liu in Singapore. Editing by Joe Bavier and Mark Potter)