By Stephanie Kelly
(Reuters) – Oil prices eased slightly in early Asian trade on Friday, after surging to a two-month high in the previous session as investors focused on signs of tight global supply.
Meanwhile, a top Hungarian aide said the country needs 3-1/2 to 4 years to shift away from Russian crude and make huge investments to adjust its economy and that it could not back the EU’s proposed oil embargo until there was a deal on all issues.
The European Commission this month proposed new sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine but said they require the unanimous support of all 27 bloc member states. Landlocked Hungary, which is heavily reliant on Russian oil imports via a pipeline, has so far blocked them.
Brent crude futures fell 11 cents to $117.29 a barrel by 0:08 GMT. WTI crude futures for July delivery fell 19 cents to $113.90 a barrel.
Prices have gained about 50% so far this year.
OPEC+ is set to stick to last year’s oil production deal at its June 2 meeting and raise July output targets by 432,000 barrels per day, six OPEC+ sources told Reuters, rebuffing Western calls for a faster increase to lower surging prices.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York; Editing by Sam Holmes)
