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Crude oil futures fell to their highest level in two weeks on Monday following reports suggesting a ceasefire deal and the release of hostages in Gaza could be closer, while economic weakness in top oil importer China threatens to curb demand.
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with senior Israeli officials in Jerusalem today, and “the market has taken the signal that Blinken is there, and the efforts of the Egyptians and some others to finally get something done, are allowing this sale to occur“said John Kilduff of Again Capital, as reported by Dow Jones.
Persistently weak economic data from China is also undermining any kind of price strength, Kilduff added.
The perspective of weak demand in china is offsetting any gains from supply risks, with apparent demand in the country falling 8% year-on-year in July according to government data, following disappointing economic data last week showing industrial activity remains subdued, ANZ research analysts said.
Meanwhile, production at Libya's Waha oil field has… returned to normal levels of ~300,000 bbl/day after pipeline maintenance was completed earlier than expected, Bloomberg reported, while production at the Sharara field has Upgraded to ~85,000 bbl/dayaccording to Reuters, nearly two weeks after Libya's National Oil Corporation declared force majeure on oil exports from the field following a blockade by protesters at the 300,000 bbl/day field.
Nymex front-month crude (CL1:COM) for September delivery ended -2.9% at $74.37 a barrel, and October Brent crude (CO1:COM) due next month closed -2.5% at $77.66 a barrel, the lowest closing price for both benchmarks since Aug. 6.
US natural gas bucked the energy price trend and traded sharply higher, with the September Nymex contract due next month (NG1:COM) closing higher +5.3% at $2.235 per MMBtu, its best settlement since July 22.
ETF: (USO), (BNO), (UCO), (SCO), (USL), (DBO), (DRIP), (GUSH), (USOI), (UNG), (BOIL), (KOLD), (UNL), (FCG)
Natural gas gains “appeared attributable to several factors “Rather than a new bullish headline,” Ritterbusch analysts said, according to Dow Jones, pointing to higher temperatures forecast for later this week across much of the U.S., the possibility of further production cuts and the storm premium as peak hurricane season approaches.
