Oil prices were lower today trading down as Mid East tensions ease. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Egypt and pushed for progress toward a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. Major differences still need to be resolved in talks this week. “There was probably around $4 to $8 of geopolitical premium baked into the price of crude oil before negotiations began on Thursday,” Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho, said in a note. Data from China, the world’s second-largest economy, showed new home prices fell in July at their fastest pace in nine years, industrial output slowed, export and investment growth dipped and unemployment rose. Worries about fuel demand in the U.S., the world’s biggest economy, pressured prices for U.S. heating oil futures to their lowest since May 2023 for a second straight day. The heating oil crack spread , which measures refining profit margins, stayed near its lowest since November 2021. WTI traded down $.33 or -.4% to close at $74.04. Brent traded down $.46 or -.6% to close at $77.20.