“Oil prices fell on Friday amid signs that demand in China, the world’s biggest crude importer, remains weak amid a patchy economic recovery.”, — write: www.epravda.com.ua
Oil prices fell on Friday amid signs that demand in China, the world’s biggest crude importer, remains weak amid a patchy economic recovery.
This is reported by the Reuters agency.
Brent crude futures fell 65 cents, or 0.9%, to $71.91 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 62 cents, or 0.9%, at $68.08.
For the week, Brent should decrease by 2.7%, while WTI – by 3.3%.
“While oil prices have stabilized somewhat this week at a support level around $71.00, the lack of clear signs for upside indicates that the price recovery remains weak for now,” IG analyst Yeap Jun Rong said in a note.
The prospect of increased supply from the US and OPEC+, along with doubts about China’s economic recovery, remain a cause for concern, while the likelihood of a December rate cut by the Federal Reserve is now “closer to chance” amid a less dovish stance from the regulator, Yeap added.
Chinese refiners processed 4.6 percent less oil in October than a year earlier, cutting output for a seventh straight month due to some refinery shutdowns and reduced operating capacity at smaller independent plants, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Friday.
The slowdown in manufacturing came amid slowing growth in China’s industrial output last month and signs of weak demand in the real estate sector, despite an increase in consumer spending, government data showed.
Oil prices also fell this week as leading analysts pointed to underlying market drivers remaining negative.
The International Energy Agency predicts that global oil supply will outstrip demand in 2025, even if output curbs from OPEC+, which includes OPEC and allies such as Russia, remain in place, as output growth in the U.S. and elsewhere outweighs weak demand.
The Paris-based agency raised its forecast for oil demand growth in 2024 by 60,000 bpd to 920,000 bpd, leaving its 2025 forecast largely unchanged at 990,000 bpd.
OPEC this week cut its forecast for global oil demand growth for this year and 2025, highlighting weakness in China, India and other regions, marking the fourth straight cut to the 2024 forecast.