[MARKET ANALYSIS] Crude pares back some of Thursday's gains as Trump cancels a second wave of attacks in Venezuela

• Following Thursday’s bid higher, which saw WTI Feb return above USD 58/bbl and Brent Mar briefly topping beyond USD 62/bbl, benchmarks have fallen back lower at the start of Friday’s European session.
• The pullback comes amid a firmer USD heading into NFP, also aided slightly following a Truth Social post by President Trump stating that a second wave of attacks in Venezuela have been cancelled and that at least USD 100bln will be invested in big oil. 
• WTI and Brent extended the lower bound of APAC’s USD 0.55/bbl range to trough at USD 57.62/bbl and USD 61.83/bbl respectively before rebounding to USD 58/bbl and USD 62.20/bbl.

Crude oil prices are retreating after Thursday's gains, primarily influenced by President Trump's cancellation of a planned second wave of attacks in Venezuela, which markets may interpret as a move towards geopolitical stability. This shift, coupled with a firmer dollar ahead of key economic data, suggests that investor sentiment is weighing potential risks against current oil supply scenarios; further price action could reflect ongoing geopolitical developments and their implications for global oil markets.