Crude oil prices hit 17-month lows this week as recession fears sparked renewed demand concerns, despite news that OPEC would cut oil output by 1.5 million barrels per day.
Brent North Sea crude slumped to US$61.00 per barrel, the lowest point since March last year.
New York’s light sweet crude tumbled to US$62.65, which was last seen in May last year.
“Crude oil is heading lower again ... on fears that the [OPEC] cut might not be sufficient to compensate the shortfall of demand due to a global recession,” Dresdner Kleinwort analyst Peter Fertig said.
OPEC said on Friday that it would slash output from Nov. 1 in an attempt to stabilize plunging oil prices, despite a looming worldwide recession.
Analysts had expected OPEC to cut its daily output by at least 1 million barrels per day as a global economic slowdown amid a worsening financial crisis slashes demand for energy.
In later trading on Friday, New York crude was US$4.59 lower at US$63.25 per barrel and Brent oil slid US$4.30 to US$61.62.
Global stock markets plunged on Friday, with London losing more than nine percent as it struck a five-year low on news that Britain’s economy shrank in the third quarter, placing it perilously close to a recession.
OPEC, which produces 40 percent of world crude, announced a cut to production in a bid to support crude prices which “have witnessed a dramatic collapse — unprecedented in speed and magnitude,” an official statement said.
Crude futures in London and New York have plunged close to 60 percent from record highs of above US$147 a barrel reached only three months ago when supply concerns sent prices soaring.
The crude market was also dampened as the dollar strengthened against the euro and pound. A stronger US unit tends to sap demand for dollar-priced commodities like crude oil and gold, which become more expensive for buyers holding weaker currencies.
The White House denounced what it called OPEC’s “anti-market” decision to cut production, even though oil prices subsequently slumped on fears of a global recession.
The cartel’s president Chakib Khelil said the production cut would not hurt the global economy.
By Friday, New York’s main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, had tumbled to US$63.16 per barrel from US$79.96 for the November contract a week earlier.
Brent North Sea crude for December slumped to US$62.62, compared with US$76.56 last week.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to