Oil prices fell more than one per cent yesterday as concerns about rising interest rates, the global economy and the outlook for fuel demand outweighed support from the prospect of tighter supplies on OPEC+ supply cuts.
Brent crude slipped 91 cents, or 1.11 per cent, to $80.75 a barrel by 0627 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $76.96 a barrel, also down 91 cents, or 1.17 percent lower.
Both contracts fell more than five per cent last week, their first weekly drop in five, as U.S. implied gasoline demand fell from a year ago, fuelling worries of a recession at the world’s top oil consumer.
Weak U.S. economic data and disappointing corporate earnings from the tech sector sparked growth concerns and risk aversion among investors, CMC Markets analyst Tina Teng said. The stabilising U.S. dollar and climbing bond yields are also adding pressure on commodity markets, she added.
Central banks from the United States to Britain and Europe are all expected to raise interest rates when they meet in the first week of May, seeking to tackle stubbornly high inflation.
China’s bumpy economic recovery from COVID-19 also clouded its oil demand outlook, although Chinese customs data showed on Friday that the world’s top crude importer brought in record volumes in March. China’s imports from top suppliers Russia and Saudi Arabia topped two million barrels per day (bpd) each.
