Brent oil decreased more than 5% in the week ending March 10, with continued concerns over weak demand in China and Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate hikes.
International benchmark Brent crude was trading at $81.01 per barrel at 2.41 p.m. (1141 GMT) on Friday, posting a 5.6% fall from the Monday session that opened at $85.83 a barrel.
The American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) registered at $75.06 per barrel at the same time on Friday, decreasing 6.1% relative to the opening price of $79.92 a barrel on Monday.
The prices started the week on a negative note over weak demand after China announced a modest economic growth target.
The world’s second-largest economy reported an official economic growth target of around 5% for 2023 on Sunday, a modest increase from 3% last year and less than the 8.1% rate from the previous year.
Prices slightly rose on Tuesday and Wednesday over a weaker US dollar and with US data indicating resurgent demand in the country.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) announced late Tuesday its estimate of a drop of nearly 3.8 million barrels in US crude oil inventories, relative to the market expectation of a 308,000-barrel increase.
On late Wednesday, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced that inventories fell by 1.7 million barrels to 478.5 million barrels.
The drop in oil inventories signaled a rise in demand in the US, the world’s biggest oil consuming country, but remained insufficient to push oil prices higher.
Meanwhile, continued concerns about Fed interest rate hikes throughout the week also put pressure on prices. Experts worry that further rise in interest rates would trigger a slowdown in economic growth.
US Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled that rate hikes are ‘likely to be higher’ than previously anticipated.
Oil prices fell around $3 a barrel on early Friday, posting their steepest decline since last month as fears of policy rate hikes weighted on the market, flooding it with demand concerns.
