October 14, 2024 03:38 GMT
OIL: China Weighs On Crude As Market Awaits Israeli Retaliation
OIL
Oil prices are down today following Saturday’s disappointing China MOF fiscal announcement, with commodities generally weaker. Crude is off its intraday lows though. Brent is down 1.1% to $78.20/bbl after a low of $77.50 and WTI is 1.1% lower at $74.76/bbl after falling to $74.08. The USD index is up 0.1%.
- Soft demand from China, the world’s largest crude importer, has worried markets for some time. Recent fiscal announcements have been sparse on details, including the size of the stimulus, and seem not to include support for consumption and so have resulted in drops in the oil price at times when the situation in the Middle East isn’t deteriorating further.
- Israel is yet to retaliate for Iran’s October 1 missile barrage. The US thinks that Israel looks likely to target military and energy sites in Iran, according to an NBC report. The timing of the response remains unknown. Iran has said that it will hit back forcefully.
- The Fed’s Kashkari and Waller appear but there are no US data due to a holiday. BoE’s Dhingra also speaks.
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