Oil prices on Monday continued their decline that began last week due to concerns about weak demand in China. However, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and around Russia limit the fall in prices. This was reported by Reuters.
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Brent oil futures fell by 12 cents , or 0.2%, to $81.96 per barrel, and American oil WTI fell by 21 cents, or 0.2%, to $77.8 per barrel.
Both indicators fell last week: Brent fell 1.8% and WTI fell 2.5%. The reason for the fall was negative economic data from China, indicating a decline in demand in the country, which is the largest importer of crude oil in the world.
“Concerns about weak demand in China outweighed the decision of OPEC+ to continue production cuts,” he said President of NS Trading, a division of Nissan Securities, Hiroyuki Kikukawa. He also added that mixed signals on employment in the United States prompted some traders to adjust their positions.
“However, the decline in prices will be limited by rising geopolitical risks. There is a possibility that a truce between Hamas and Israel will not be achieved, and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine could expand to their neighbors,” he said.
