Crude oil imports by China in the first four months of 2022 fell 4.8% from a year earlier, but April’s imports rose by about 7%.
Oil prices fell nearly 6% on Monday along with equities as the ongoing coronavirus lockdown in China, the top oil importer, raised concerns about the demand outlook.
Brent crude fell $6.45, or 5.7%, to $105.94 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude fell $6.68, or 6.1%, to $103.09 a barrel. So far this year, both the contracts have gained about 35 per cent.
Global financial markets have been buoyed by interest rate hikes and concerns about a slowdown as the world’s No. 2 economy slowed export growth in April due to a strict and widespread COVID-19 lockdown in China.
“The COVID lockdown in China is negatively impacting the oil market, which is coupled with equities selling out,” said Andrew Lipo, president of Lipo Oil Associated in Houston.
Crude oil imports by China in the first four months of 2022 fell 4.8% from a year earlier, but April’s imports rose by about 7%.
China’s Iranian oil imports in April were seen in late 2021 and early 2022 as demand weakened by independent refiners after the COVID lockdown dented fuel margins and on rising imports of low-priced Russian oil.
Wall Street stock indexes fell and the dollar hit a two-decade high, making oil more expensive for holders of other currencies. [MKTS/GLOB]
Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, lowered crude oil prices for Asia and Europe for June.
In Russia, oil production increased from April to early May and output stagnated, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak was quoted as saying, after production fell in April as Western countries imposed sanctions over the Ukraine crisis.
EU Russia oil embargo
Last week, the European Commission proposed a phased ban on Russian oil, raising Brent and WTI prices for the second week in a row. Passing the resolution requires a unanimous vote by EU members this week.
An EU source told Reuters the European Commission is considering offering landlocked eastern EU states more money to upgrade oil infrastructure.
“EU oil sanctions will trigger a seismic shift in European and global crude markets, which Rystad Energy expects to reduce EU crude oil imports from Russia to a full 3.0 million bpd (barrels per day) by December 2022. Policy implementation,” said Björner Tonhaugen, Rystad Energy’s head of oil market research.
German officials are quietly preparing for any sudden interruption of Russian gas supplies with an emergency package that could include taking control of key firms, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Japan, the top five crude importer, would impose sanctions on Russian crude imports “in principle”, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said, adding that it would take time.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly; Additional reporting by Shadia Nasralla and Florence Tan; Editing by David Evans, David Gregorio and Margarita Choy)
0 notes
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
for the latest auto news And reviewFollow carandbike.com Twitter, Facebookand ours. subscribe to youtube Channel.