Oil market fell more than 1% on Chinese demand concerns
However, the declines were moderated by a report from the American Petroleum Institute, which indicated a decrease of 4.4 million barrels in US commercial crude inventories last week.
International benchmarks for crude oil extended the weakening trend for the third straight session on Tuesday, 16 July following a slew of disappointing economic data from China, fuelling concerns over the state of demand in the world’s largest oil importer. A stronger US dollar also weighed on the commodity.
However, the declines were moderated by a report from the American Petroleum Institute, which indicated a decrease of 4.4 million barrels in US commercial crude inventories last week. The official data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) is expected to be released the following day.
Brent dropped $1.12 or 1.3% to settle at $83.73/barrel.
WTI fell $1.15 or 1.4% to close at $80.76/barrel.
Written by: Rochelle Nguyen