By 1028 GMT, Brent crude futures fell 47 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $73.93 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate crude fell 45 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $70.22 a barrel.
The two benchmark crude oils are heading to suffer a loss of more than six percent this week, which is their largest weekly decline since September 2, after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the International Energy Agency reduced their expectations for global oil demand in 2024 and 2025.
Fears of a possible Israeli attack on… Iran It may disrupt Tehran’s oil exports.
The economy in China, the world’s largest oil importer, grew in the third quarter at the slowest pace since early 2023, but data on consumption and industrial production exceeded expectations in September.
Refinery production also decreased China For the sixth month in a row, weak fuel consumption and declining refining margins negatively affected processing operations.
The Chinese central bank has put forward two financing plans that will initially pump 800 billion yuan ($112.38 billion) into the stock market through newly launched monetary policy tools.
Crude oil prices received support after data issued by the US Energy Information Administration showed a decline in inventories of crude oil, gasoline, and distillates in the United States last week.
US retail sales rose slightly more than expected in September, and investors still expect 92 percent of the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates in November.
However, the markets are still concerned about possible rises in oil prices in light of the escalating tension in the Middle East, as the Lebanese Hezbollah group announced on Friday “the transition to a new and escalating phase in the confrontation with the Israeli enemy, which will be discussed in the course of the coming days” after the killing of Yahya Sinwar. .
