SINGAPORE: Oil prices fell by around 1 per cent on Wednesday on concerns the Sino-US trade war could trigger a global economic downturn, but relatively tight supply amid Opec output cuts and political tensions in the Middle East offered some support.
Front-month Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, were at $69.53 a barrel at 06:41 GMT, down 58 cents, or 0.8 per cent, from last session’s close.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $58.46 per barrel, down 70 cents, or 1.2 per cent, from their last settlement.
“Crude oil was weak as the bears on demand are winning compared to the bulls on supply,” James Mick, managing director and energy portfolio manager with US investment firm Tortoise, said in an investor podcast.
“Investors are concerned from a macro perspective about worldwide demand, particularly in the face of the growing trade dispute between the US and China,” he said.
Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at futures brokerage Forex.com, said another concern was that “falls in emerging market currencies (are) making dollar-priced crude oil dearer to purchase in those nations” and that crude prices could pull back.
Despite the economic concerns, global oil demand is so far holding up well, likely averaging over 100 million barrels per day (bpd) this year for the first time, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).
But analysts are concerned that tightening credit amid the economic slowdown will hamper trading in commodities.
“We remain cautious regarding the short-term macroeconomic environment,” commodity brokerage Marex Spectron said in a note. — Reuters
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