Crude oil futures settled higher in after-hours trading on Friday after President Trump departed Beijing without securing a breakthrough to end the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose by 4.44% to $105.66 per barrel, while Brent futures gained 3.55% to $109.47/bbl.
On Friday, Trump reportedly said he didn't push President Xi to pressure Iran to open the Hormuz, offering no sign of a breakthrough in the standoff over the key chokepoint. China is the top buyer of Iranian crude.
The US President reportedly said that he is losing patience with Iran. "I am not going to be much more patient. They should make a deal," Trump was quoted as saying.
"President Trump said he does not need Hormuz reopened, although discussions with Chinese President Xi included the ongoing conflict and energy security concerns," Soojin Kim, research analyst at MUFG, said.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said China is set to increase its crude oil imports from the US as the world's two largest economies deepen energy ties amid significant global supply disruptions, according to media reports.
"There's a natural energy trade there," Wright reportedly said, noting that the US is the world's largest producer while China remains the top importer. "I suspect we'll see a growth in their oil imports from the United States."
However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that Tehran has "no trust" in the US and will negotiate only with Washington if it is serious. Araqchi said that Iran is prepared to return to fighting but also to pursue diplomatic solutions.
"Currently, trust is the most important issue. We cannot trust the Americans at all. As a result, everything has to be precise, and everything has to be clearly defined before we can reach an agreement," Araghchi told reporters in New Delhi on Friday.
Meanwhile, Chinese FM Wang Yi says Beijing believes a solution to issues in the Strait of Hormuz "lies in achieving a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire" between the US and Iran, adding that "force cannot solve problems."
"China is likely to support a gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, but on terms that preserve its flexibility," Kpler strategists said, adding that the closure threatens global growth, Asian energy markets and the export demand underpinning China's economy.
On the supply front, the Middle East conflict has driven global oil inventories down at a record pace, and the market will remain "severely undersupplied" until October even if hostilities end next month, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday.
The IEA said that global observed oil inventories dropped by 250 million barrels in March and April, or at a rate of about 4 million barrels per day.
OPEC also said on Wednesday that crude production among member states fell further in April and is down more than 30% since the onset of the conflict in late February. The producer group said production fell by 1.7 million b/d in April after output plunged by 7.9 million b/d in March.