RoydadNaft –  Crude prices clawed back some ground in early Asian trade on Wednesday after plunging to one-month lows in the previous session, as investors digested signals that a U.S.-brokered peace deal between Ukraine and Russia could soon lift sanctions and unleash a wave of Russian barrels onto an already oversupplied market.

Brent crude futures were up 19 cents, or 0.3%, at $62.67 a barrel by 0114 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate added 14 cents, or 0.24%, to $58.09 a barrel.

Both benchmarks had tumbled 89 cents on Tuesday after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told European leaders he is ready to move forward with a Washington-backed framework to end the war, with only “a few points” left to resolve.

“If a deal is sealed, Western sanctions on Russian energy exports could evaporate almost overnight,” said Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG, warning that WTI could quickly slide toward $55 a barrel. “Until we get clarity, the bias remains firmly lower unless talks collapse.”

President Donald Trump confirmed he has instructed U.S. envoys to hold separate meetings with Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian officials, while a Kyiv source said Zelenskiy may travel to the United States within days to finalise terms.

The prospect of peace comes just as the West has ratcheted up pressure on Moscow’s oil trade. Recent sanctions on Rosneft, Lukoil and dozens of shadow-fleet tankers have already pushed India’s Russian crude imports to a projected three-year low in December. A sudden sanctions rollback would reverse that squeeze and flood the market with discounted supply.

Countering the bearish mood, traders cited growing bets on a Federal Reserve rate cut next month after softer-than-expected U.S. retail spending and inflation data. Cheaper borrowing costs would support economic activity and oil demand.

For now, the market remains on edge. “Everyone’s waiting for the next headline out of Washington or Kyiv,” said one Singapore-based crude trader. “One signature could add millions of barrels a day back online — and send prices straight through the floor.”