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Crude oil is one piece of the market that consistently fluctuates, and it has been no different in 2025. In January, oil prices hit a five-month peak only to plummet just months later.

On Friday, oil prices fell further to multiyear lows amid fears of a full-blown trade war. West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) fell more than 7%, while Brent (BZ=F) futures dropped more than 6%. The last time crude traded at these levels was in 2021.

On Yahoo Finance’s Trader Talk, Wall Street veteran trader Kenny Polcari offered a clear direction for investors: “Stop chasing oil prices.”

“Every time oil moves, investors scramble to react,” Polcari said in a March 12 episode of Trader Talk (see video above or listen below). “Prices tick up, everyone rushes into energy stocks, convinced oil’s heading to $150 a barrel, prices drop. Suddenly, it’s all about demand, destruction, and recession fears. This constant overreaction is exactly why so many people lose money in the energy trade.”

Polcari stated that “oil is volatile by nature,” but it “isn’t going anywhere,” as most of the market’s continuously growing sectors rely on oil.

“Betting on short-term moves is a losing game,” he said. “Instead, the smart money follows the bigger trend. Despite the push for renewables, the world still runs on fossil fuels. AI data centers, global manufacturing, and infrastructure projects all require massive amounts of energy. The idea that demand is collapsing just isn’t really supported by reality.”

Polcari also pointed out that the US is producing near-record levels of oil, giving the country more control over the supply in the market and “keeping a lid on prices.”

This sentiment was echoed by Lou Basenese, the executive vice president of market strategy at Prairie Operating Company, an independent oil and gas company. Basenese stated on the podcast that “it’s best to bet right now on the long term for oil.”

Though renewable energy sources have been growing their share of the US energy mix, Basenese pushed back against the idea that the US could fully transition to 100% renewables like solar, wind, and hydropower. “There is no real energy transition,” he said. “It might be a rebalancing.”

The US remains a key player in the oil market, producing a record 13 million barrels a day, Basenese said. However, this won’t prevent traders from having to navigate a volatile market.

As Yahoo Finance’s Ines Ferré reported, President Trump’s tariff program and China’s retaliation tanked crude oil prices this week. Losses extended on Friday as investors digested economic growth concerns and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, or OPEC+, said it planned to increase supply.