Up Modestly, Awaiting US CPI & OPEC+ Report Later.

Brent (K4) has risen modestly in the first part of Tuesday trade. The benchmark was last at $82.50/bbl, up 0.35%, building on a small gain from Monday's session. WTI (J4) is up by a similar magnitude, last near $78.15/bbl. Both markets appear to be largely treading water ahead of key event risks later.

• Brent sits comfortably above Monday's lows near $81/bbl. Equally we are still some distance away from early March highs of $84.34/bbl.
• Earlier headlines crossed from Houthis stating they had attacked a US vessel in the Red Sea. The US stated that no damage has been reported and that the missiles did not strike the vessel. This follows joint US/UK strikes against Houthi controlled areas in Yemen (BBG).
• Like markets elsewhere, oil traders are awaiting the print of the US CPI later. Also out will be the OPEC+ monthly report, along with industry figures on US crude stockpiles.
• OPEC+ crude oil production rose to 34.62mbpd in February, up from 34.54mbpd in January and 0.30mbpd above the pledged output target according to Argus estimates.