08:38 AM EDT, 08/28/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Oil prices edged down early on Thursday but remained firmly rangebound as traders anticipate the coming end of high-demand U.S. summer driving season while waiting to see if India will continue to defy 50% secondary sanctions on its imports into the United States for buying Russian oil.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil for October delivery was last seen down US$0.07 to US$64.08 per barrel, while October Brent crude was down $0.10 to US$67.95.

Oil has mostly traded in a tight range since mid-April as high summer demand has countered rising supply even as the U.S. driving season comes to an end with the coming Labor Day holiday weekend. The Energy Information Administration on Wednesday reported U.S. oil inventories fell a more than expected 2.4-milllion barrels last week showing the high summer call on stocks continued.

However OPEC+ will end the return of return of 2.2-million barrels per day of supply cuts with a final 548.000 bpd tranche on Sept.1, the beginning of the autumn shoulder season. Still, some doubt over supply remains as traders wait to see if India will yield to U.S. demands to end its purchases of discounted Russian oil and compete for Middle Eastern supply.

"Crude prices remain range-bound, with tariff-led risks to Indian demand for Russian crude being more than offset by expectations for an oversupplied market into the final quarter and beyond, as eight OPEC+ producers take aim at their raised production targets," Saxo Bank wrote.

A weakening physical market is also weighing on the outlook for oil with prices for tanker shipments waning as the shoulder season approaches.

"Interest in mid-September loadings has dried up, with activity for North Sea grades very quiet since the end of July. While both financial structure and Atlantic Basin demand seasonally drop through year end following summer drawdowns, softening across the forward curve has been notable for mid-September trading," Brian Leisen, Global Oil Strategist at RBC Capital Markets noted.