Oil prices fell significantly on Thursday, with traders’ attention shifting back to supply and demand prospects after the hype around Greenland subsided.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said that the United States wants to immediately begin negotiations to purchase Greenland from Denmark and does not intend to use military force to seize the island.
Trump later wrote on Truth Social that he had abandoned plans to impose tariffs on a number of European countries in February because he had been able to agree with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on a basis for further negotiations on Greenland.
“We are now seeing a decline in the risk premium associated with events surrounding Greenland and the situation in Iran,” said Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen.
The price of March Brent futures on the London ICE Futures exchange at 13:15 GMT is $64.42 per barrel, which is $0.82 (1.26%) lower than at the close of previous trading.
WTI crude oil futures for March delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) rose in price by $0.76 (1.25%) to $59.86 per barrel.
On Thursday, the market’s attention is focused on the weekly report on energy reserves in the US, which will be released at 7:00 p.m.
Estimates from the American Petroleum Institute (API), published on Wednesday night, showed an increase in US oil reserves last week of 3.04 million barrels.
Traders also continue to monitor the situation in Kazakhstan, where oil production at the Tengiz and Royal fields was suspended this week due to problems with the power distribution systems.
US President Donald Trump, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, reiterated his intention to seek control over Greenland and, commenting on the topic, said: “I’m just asking for a piece of ice.”
According to Reuters and AP, Trump claimed that the US would not use force to obtain the island, while insisting on the need for negotiations and calling Washington’s request a “small request” in the context of the US’s role in ensuring the security of its allies.
Greenland is an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. Trump’s statements about a possible change in the island’s status previously provoked a sharp reaction in Europe, where the inadmissibility of a forceful scenario and the importance of respecting sovereignty were emphasized.
The island is interesting for its reserves and prospects for the extraction of critically important minerals, including rare earth elements, which are important for high-tech industries and energy transition.
Greenland is also associated with the planet’s largest reserves of fresh water in the form of ice – together with Antarctica, the ice sheets contain more than 99% of the Earth’s fresh ice.
Its key advantage is its geography: its location on Arctic and North Atlantic routes, including the GIUK (Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom) area, which NATO considers a strategic maritime “corridor” between the Arctic and the Atlantic.
Gold and silver prices hit new highs on Monday amid increased demand for safe-haven assets due to the situation surrounding Greenland.
Traders fear that increased pressure from US President Donald Trump, who is laying claim to Greenland, will provoke a large-scale trade war between the US and Europe.
On Saturday, Trump announced that he would impose 10% tariffs on a number of European countries that support Denmark and Greenland starting in February. From June 1, 2026, the tariffs for these countries will be 25% and will remain in effect “until an agreement is reached on the full purchase of Greenland by Washington,” Trump said.
European countries are ready for a coordinated response to the introduction of US tariffs, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. According to the Financial Times, EU countries are considering imposing tariffs on US goods worth €93 billion or a series of restrictions on American companies.
The trade tensions surrounding Greenland are different from last year’s situation with the US imposing large-scale tariffs, notes Charu Chanan, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets in Singapore.
“The use of tariff threats within NATO is a kind of blow to confidence that could provoke a more persistent risk premium on asset values,” she says.
The spot price of gold rose 1.6% to $4,670.47 per ounce by 9:30 a.m. on Monday, while silver rose 3.4% to $93.1755 per ounce. During the session, the price of gold rose to a record $4,690.59 per ounce, and silver to $94.1213 per ounce.
“Geopolitical risks are intensifying,” said Kyle Rodda, an analyst at Capital.com Inc. in Melbourne. “New trade uncertainty is clouding the growth outlook, and US foreign policy is undermining confidence in the dollar. This is the perfect set of conditions for gold and silver prices to rise.”
US stock index futures are down 0.8-1.3% on Monday. Trading activity on the futures market is weak as US exchanges are closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
Reference: The Experts Club analytical center previously released a video analysis of the twenty largest silver-producing countries and their competition for leadership in 1971-2024 – https://www.youtube.com/shorts/HvKK-YET8vs
The Experts Club also previously presented an analysis of the world’s leading gold-producing countries — https://youtube.com/shorts/DWbzJ1e2tJc?si=BywddHO-JFWFqUFA
US President Donald Trump has announced the introduction of 10% tariffs against Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland from February 1, Clash Report reports.
“Starting February 1, 2026, all of the above countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland) will be subject to a 10% tariff on all goods shipped to the United States of America. On June 1, 2026, the tariff will be increased to 25%,” he wrote on the social network Truth Social.
Trump noted that these countries are directly opposing US attempts to take over Greenland.
“These tariffs will be assessed and payable until an agreement is reached on the complete and absolute purchase of Greenland,” he added.
The potential cost of a hypothetical deal on the purchase of Greenland by the United States could be up to $700 billion, a number of media outlets reported, citing NBC News. The publications claim that the assessment was prepared by experts and former U.S. officials, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was allegedly tasked to draft a proposal for the purchase of the island in the coming weeks.
At the same time, it is emphasized that this is not an official price position of the US government, but a calculation within the framework of discussions around the initiative of President Donald Trump. According to NBC News’ retelling of the story, the $700 billion amount is comparable to more than half of the Pentagon’s annual budget, illustrating the scale of the financial and political hurdles to any such “deal.”
The reaction from Copenhagen and Nuuk remains negative. Denmark and Greenland authorities have publicly stated that the island is not for sale and that the issue of the autonomous territory’s status is related to sovereignty and the right to self-determination. Reuters reported this week that after a meeting in Washington between Rubio and U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, the Danish and Greenlandic sides, while not changing their “no-sale” position, agreed to set up a working group to discuss a wide range of issues related to security and cooperation around the island.
The new $700 billion estimate falls in line with a number of previous, highly divergent “paper” estimates that have appeared in recent years. For example, The Washington Post in 2019 within the hypothetical valuation called a very wide range of possible price – from hundreds of millions of dollars to $1.7 trillion.
U.S. interest in Greenland is usually explained by a combination of security and resource factors. The island occupies a key position in the Arctic and North Atlantic, and is also seen as a potentially significant territory in terms of access to minerals and strategic infrastructure.
At the same time, even if there is political will in Washington, the “purchase” scenario is constrained by basic legal and political limitations: Greenland is an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, and its status and future, according to the position of local and Danish authorities, cannot be subject to external “bargaining”. Against this background, analysts call the most realistic continuation of the plot not a change of sovereignty, but bargaining around increased U.S. cooperation with Denmark and Greenland – on defense, infrastructure and investment – without formally changing the island’s status.
French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Greenland on Sunday, where he expressed European solidarity and support for the Danish autonomous territory, which US President Donald Trump had previously stated his intention to take control of, France24 reports.
“It is important to show that Denmark and Europe are committed to this territory, which has very high strategic interests and whose territorial integrity must be respected,” Macron said.
The French president made the visit together with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on their way to the G7 summit in Canada on June 15-17. They were met at Nuuk airport by Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens Frederiksen.
Macron criticized Trump’s intention to take control of the island. “I don’t think that’s something you do to allies,” the French president said.
According to the publication, the visit will also be an opportunity to discuss how to further strengthen relations between the EU and Greenland when it comes to economic development, the transition to low-carbon energy, and critical minerals.
Later on Sunday, Macron, Frederiksen, and Nielsen held a meeting on a Danish helicopter carrier, demonstrating France’s concern about security issues in the region.
