Oil prices ease to near 2-month lows
Oil prices slipped to trade near two-month lows on Monday, having earlier slid by around $1 a barrel, as supply fears receded while concerns over fuel demand from China and US dollar strength weighed on prices.
Brent crude futures for January had slipped 52 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to $87.10 a barrel by 1326GMT.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for December were at $79.40 a barrel, down 68 cents or 0.9 per cent, ahead of the contract's expiry later on Monday. The more active January contract was down 43 cents or 0.5 per cent to $79.68 a barrel.
Both benchmarks closed Friday at their lowest since September 27, extending losses for a second week, with Brent down nine per cent and WTI 10 per cent lower.
“Apart from the weakened demand outlook due to China's Covid curbs, a rebound in the U.S. dollar today is also a bearish factor for oil prices,” said CMC Markets analyst Tina Teng. “Risk sentiment becomes fragile as all the recent major countries' economic data point to a recessionary scenario, especially in the UK and euro zone,” she said, adding that hawkish comments from the US Federal Reserve last week also sparked concerns over the US economic outlook.