Oil prices decline as traders weigh prospect of EU ban on Russian oil

Oil prices retreated on Tuesday after a jump in the prior session, as traders are weighing the prospect of a European Union (EU) ban on imports of Russian oil.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for April delivery lost 36 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to settle at 111.76 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on its expiration day. Brent crude for May delivery decreased 14 cents, or 0.1 per cent, to close at 115.48 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

On Monday, both the WTI and global crude standard jumped 7.1 per cent following reports of growing calls within the EU for a ban on Russian oil imports.

"It is still not clear whether this will really happen, as a number of EU member states are too dependent on Russian oil to be able to easily find an alternative source of supply at short notice," Carsten Fritsch, energy analyst at Commerzbank Research, said Tuesday in a note.

"Not all EU countries, therefore, support the idea, yet a decision of this kind requires unanimity," he said.

Oil prices have experienced wild moves recently as geopolitical risks over Ukraine stoked fears of a supply shock.