Crude clung to losses amid a combination of weak economic data and signals that a recovery in consumption might be slowing.
Futures posted a 0.4 percent decline in New York on Friday. Although strength in US equities pushed oil up from the lows of the session, futures were unable to rally amid a flurry of disappointing data points.
In the US, consumer sentiment posted a surprise drop. COVID-19 cases in the country have passed the 3.7 million mark.
Photo: Bloomberg
Meanwhile in India, road fuel sales fell in the first half of July as virus lockdowns occurred in several cities, and the Chinese city of Urumqi locked down some areas amid fears of another outbreak in the country.
BRENT CRUDE
The global benchmark Brent crude dropped 0.53 percent to US$43.14 a barrel, and posting its first weekly decline in a month, falling 0.23 percent over the week.
“Consumer confidence, with its big miss today, weighed on the earlier optimism that we saw,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group Inc. “There’s a concern that, after the stimulus checks run out, there’s going to be a pullback in retail sales and definitely a pullback in travel by car if people are not going to be working.”
US benchmark crude futures are having trouble breaking out of the tight trading range they have been in since early last month. Major gasoline-guzzling states such as Texas and California are facing a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, squashing demand, while the OPEC+ alliance is preparing to unleash crude oil back into the market next month.
WEST TEXAS
The 200-day moving average for West Texas intermediate (WTI) futures around US$43 a barrel “is keeping a lid on prices from surging higher,” said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital LLC. “If we can get through that, then you might see some fireworks, some more aggressive buying coming in, but for now it’s sort of a wait-and-see.”
WTI for July delivery dropped 0.39 percent to US$40.59 a barrel, gaining 0.1 percent for the week.
With prices treading water, there has been little to get excited about for traders. Volumes on the global Brent benchmark in July are heading for their lowest month since 2014, while those for WTI are set for their quietest month since 2015.
“There’s some trepidation on people’s part between the resurgence of the virus around the world limiting people heading back to work and the anticipation of OPEC increasing production,” said Sal Gilbertie, president and chief investment officer of Teucrium Trading LLC.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Anna Bhobho, a 31-year-old housewife from rural Zimbabwe, was once a silent observer in her home, excluded from financial and family decisionmaking in the deeply patriarchal society. Today, she is a driver of change in her village, thanks to an electric tricycle she owns. In many parts of rural sub-Saharan Africa, women have long been excluded from mainstream economic activities such as operating public transportation. However, three-wheelers powered by green energy are reversing that trend, offering financial opportunities and a newfound sense of importance. “My husband now looks up to me to take care of a large chunk of expenses,
SECTOR LEADER: TSMC can increase capacity by as much as 20 percent or more in the advanced node part of the foundry market by 2030, an analyst said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to lead its peers in the advanced 2-nanometer process technology, despite competition from Samsung Electronics Co and Intel Corp, TrendForce Corp analyst Joanne Chiao (喬安) said. TSMC’s sophisticated products and its large production scale are expected to allow the company to continue dominating the global 2-nanometer process market this year, Chiao said. The world’s largest contract chipmaker is scheduled to begin mass production of chips made on the 2-nanometer process in its Hsinchu fab in the second half of this year. It would also hold a ceremony on Monday next week to
TECH CLUSTER: The US company’s new office is in the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City, a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan US chip designer Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday launched an office in Tainan’s Gueiren District (歸仁), marking a significant milestone in the development of southern Taiwan’s artificial intelligence (AI) industry, the Tainan City Government said in a statement. AMD Taiwan general manager Vincent Chern (陳民皓) presided over the opening ceremony for the company’s new office at the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City (沙崙智慧綠能科學城), a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan. Facilities in the new office include an information processing center, and a research and development (R&D) center, the Tainan Economic Development Bureau said. The Ministry
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday signed a letter of intent with Alaska Gasline Development Corp (AGDC), expressing an interest to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) and invest in the latter’s Alaska LNG project, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement. Under the agreement, CPC is to participate in the project’s upstream gas investment to secure stable energy resources for Taiwan, the ministry said. The Alaska LNG project is jointly promoted by AGDC and major developer Glenfarne Group LLC, as Alaska plans to export up to 20 million tonnes of LNG annually from 2031. It involves constructing an 1,290km
RSS