2020.08.2510:24:00UTC+00Oil Prices Mixed In Cautious Trade

Oil prices were mixed in cautious trade on Tuesday as traders weighed storm-driven production cuts in the U.S. Gulf Coast against rising coronavirus cases in Asia and Europe.

Increasing U.S. rig count also kept prices under pressure ahead of the API inventory data.

Benchmark Brent crude rose 18 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $45.82 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were marginally lower at $42.61 a barrel.

Energy producers have reportedly shut more than 1.5 million barrels per day of Gulf Coast offshore oil production, nearly 14 percent of the nation's total output as Tropical Storm Laura moved toward the Gulf of Mexico.

The storm is expected to strengthen into a category 1 hurricane as it approaches the Louisiana/Texas coast.

On the coronavirus front, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that the Covid-19 pandemic is still expanding, but the rise in cases and deaths has slowed globally, except for Southeast Asia and the eastern Mediterranean regions.

Europe is seeing a rise in coronavirus cases while researchers in Hong Kong reported what appears to be the first confirmed case of Covid-19 reinfection.

Top U.S. virus expert Anthony Fauci has warned against rushing out a Covid-19 vaccine before it has been fully tested.