Crude oil futures snapped back Tuesday as concerns about Russian supplies overshadowed news that key Libyan ports are coming back online.
May crude oil was up $0.88 at $101.32 a barrel, ending a two-day skid.
Pro-Moscow activists are calling for their own referendum on independence for eastern Ukraine. Russia has already annexed Crimea and the Kremlin now says Ukraine may be on the verge of civil war.
Later today, the American Petroleum Institute releases its weekly U.S. inventories report. The Energy Department is out with official data the next day. Analysts expect a build in supplies after last week's surprising draw down due to delays at the Houston Ship Channel.
A measure of U.S. small-business optimism improved in March. The National Federation of Independent Business said its small-business optimism index rose 2 points to 93.4.
Wednesday afternoon will see the release of the minutes from the most recent Federal Reserve meeting.
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Market Analysis
May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.