Oil fell for a third day as a hastening downturn in the euro area added to wider worries about economic growth in top importer China.
(Bloomberg) — Oil fell for a third day as a hastening downturn in the euro area added to wider worries about economic growth in top importer China.
West Texas Intermediate futures for October fell below $79 a barrel, hitting the lowest level intraday in almost a month as the contraction in euro-area private sector activity intensified in August. China’s stuttering economy also continues to threaten demand for global commodities. The dollar also climbed, making raw materials priced in the currency less appealing.
“The European PMIs were disappointing and a stronger dollar is also not helping oil,” said Giovanni Staunovo, a commodity analyst at UBS Group AG.
Crude’s rally since late June has faltered over the last couple of sessions amid the worsening outlook in China and signs the Federal Reserve isn’t yet done with its campaign of monetary tightening. That’s overshadowed a tightening market following supply cuts by OPEC+ kingpins Saudi Arabia and Russia.
Elsewhere, the industry-funded American Petroleum Institute said US crude stockpiles fell 2.4 million barrels last week, a bullish signal if confirmed by official Energy Information Administration data due later Wednesday.
To get Bloomberg’s Energy Daily newsletter direct into your inbox, click here.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.