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Oil prices held steady on Tuesday after tumbling to a four-year low the previous day on tariff-related demand worries.
Benchmark Brent crude futures edged up by 0.1 percent to $64.27 a barrel in European trade, while WTI crude futures were up 0.2 percent at $60.82.
Some calm returned to markets even as trade tensions escalated, with Beijing saying that the U.S. threat to escalate tariffs against China is a 'mistake on top of a mistake' and amounts to blackmail.
Goldman Sachs has warned that Brent crude could drop below $40 a barrel by late 2026 under extreme scenarios involving both a global GDP slowdown and a full unwinding of OPEC+ cuts.
Geopolitical tensions remained on investors' radar after U.S. President Donald Trump announced Monday that the United States and Iran are set to engage in direct negotiations on Tehran's nuclear program.
"I think everybody agrees that reaching a deal would be preferable to the obvious," he said, adding, "Hopefully, those talks will be successful. And I think it would be in Iran's best interests if they are successful."
An Iranian official later told Reuters that the talks would be held in the Sultanate of Oman in an indirect manner, with Omani mediation.
Trump also proposed a U.S. takeover of Gaza while suggesting a permanent displacement of Palestinians from the enclave.
