Oil prices continued to fall on Wednesday after falling 5% in the previous session amid investor concerns about the health of the US economy ahead of an expected rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
crude oil futures Brent fell $2.27, or 3%, to $73.05 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate oil (WTI) fell $2.28, or 3.1%, to $69.38.
Both benchmarks closed at their lowest levels since late March in the previous session, when they also posted their biggest one-day percentage drop since early January.
The market is waiting Federal Reserve raise interest rates another 25 basis points on Wednesday to fight inflation, while European Central Bank he will also raise the stakes at his regular policy meeting on Thursday.
A further increase could slow economic growth and affect energy requirement.
Energy prices are also under pressure after the data from China data over the weekend showed that manufacturing activity fell unexpectedly in April. China is the world’s largest consumer of energy and a major buyer of crude oil.
The reopening of the Chinese economy after the pandemic will be important for Asia, experts say. International Monetary Fund, which raised its economic forecasts for the region on Tuesday. At the same time, he warned about the risks of continuing inflation and volatility in world markets caused by problems in the Western banking sector.
meanwhile, US crude oil reserves They fell for the third week in a row for the first time since December, dropping by about 3.9 million barrels last week, according to market sources citing data from the American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday.
Official inventory data from the US Energy Information Administration will be released Wednesday afternoon.
Reuters
Source: Aristegui Noticias
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
