Crude futures settle mixed

Oil prices settled mixed on Wednesday.

The West Texas Intermediate for April delivery lost 21 cents, or 0.32 percent, to settle at 65.42 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent crude for April delivery gained 8 cents, or 0.11 percent, to settle at 70.85 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

China congratulates the Central African Republic (CAR) on its recent elections, and calls for sustained international support for advancing peace and development in the African country, Teng Fei, counselor of China's Permanent Mission to the United Nations, said on Wednesday at a UN Security Council meeting on Wednesday.

The meeting focused on the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the CAR, known by its French acronym as MINUSCA.

Valentine Rugwabiza, the UN secretary-general's special representative and head of MINUSCA, briefed the Security Council on the latest situation, noting that the December 28, 2025 polls marked an important milestone in consolidating the peace process and state authority.

Commending the successful conclusion of the electoral process and the re-election of President Faustin-Archange Touadera, Teng emphasized the need for global cooperation to sustain this progress, and urged armed groups to lay down their weapons.

"Recently, the CAR successfully conducted its presidential, legislative, regional, and municipal elections. The re-election of President Faustin-Archange Touadera marks an important milestone in the national peace process. China congratulates the people of the CAR on this achievement. The international community should seize this momentum to help the country consolidate its current positive trajectory and achieve lasting peace, development, and prosperity at an early date," Teng said.

"In the next phase, the priority of the CAR must shift towards strengthening national governance systems and capacity building. Violence is a dead end. We call on those armed groups who are already parties to the political agreement to honor their commitments in good faith and proceed with disarmament immediately, while urging others to cease hostilities and join the peace process. The international community should increase aid and investment in the CAR, strengthen the government's credibility and rallying power, so as to uproot the causes of violence and lay a solid foundation for lasting peace," he said.