WTI crude oil prices are making gains early on Tuesday over rising optimism among traders for a potential supply cut at the upcoming OPEC meeting scheduled for later this week. At the time of writing, WTI crude oil is trading at around $26.98 per barrel.

Even though crude oil prices have risen slightly, analysts remain skeptical that the production cuts would offset the fall in demand for oil across the world in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The mood in global financial markets continues to be dominated by sentiments around the pandemic and its economic impact.

Amid lockdowns and travel restrictions in place, the demand for crude oil continues to weaken, and with the global economy headed towards a recession, oil demand is expected to remain subdued for some time to come. However, oil traders are looking forward to the OPEC meeting on Thursday where it is widely expected that Saudi Arabia and Russia could resolve their differences and put an end to the price war which caused oil prices to crash last month.

According to reports on Reuters, there are also expectations that OPEC could convince the US also to curtail oil production and cooperate towards preventing an oversupply in markets. While this may provide temporary relief to oil prices, crude oil is likely to trade weak until economic activity rebounds around the world after the coronavirus pandemic is brought under control.