Oil eases amid uncertainty around Russia-Ukraine peace plan, oversupply worries

Oil prices eased on Tuesday as markets weighed faltering Russia-Ukraine peace hopes against fears of oversupply.

Brent crude futures fell 25 cents, or 0.4%, to $62.92 a barrel by 11:38 a.m. ET (1638 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was down 24 cents, or 0.4%, to $59.08 a barrel.

Both benchmarks advanced more than 1% on Monday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday warned European powers that if they started a war with Russia, Moscow was ready to fight. Putin also threatened to sever Ukraine's access to the sea in response to drone attacks on tankers of Russia's "shadow fleet" in the Black Sea.

MIXED RHETORIC ON RUSSIAN OIL

Putin is set to start a two-day visit to India starting on Thursday, pitching more sales of Russian oil, missile systems and fighter jets in a bid to restore energy and defence ties hit by U.S. pressure on the South Asian nation.

"The mixed rhetoric caused a little shakedown in oil, initially showing confidence that Russia will continue to be a supplier of oil to India," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group. However, Putin's comments signalled that the peace deal may not be as close as the market would have hoped, Flynn said.

Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and son-in-law Jared Kushner will meet Putin on Tuesday for talks on a possible way to end the war.