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Oil prices edged lower early on Tuesday, coming off gains made the previous day as concerns about the global economic backdrop outweighed supply worries raised when Saudi Arabia announced its biggest output cut in years.
Brent crude futures slipped 27c to $76.44 a barrel by 4.11am GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude fell 33c to $71.82 a barrel.
Brent had gained as much as $2.60 on Monday and US crude as much as $3.30 after Saudi Arabia, the world’s top exporter, said at the weekend its output would drop by 1-million barrels per day (bpd) to 9-million bpd in July. The benchmarks pulled back, though, to more modest gains by the end of the day.
“Supply side issues took centre stage following Opec’s production cuts. However, the gains were limited amid ongoing concerns over the economic backdrop,” said ANZ analysts in a research note.
Market participants are now waiting to see if the US Federal Reserve will hike or hold interest rates in June, and what China’s May trade data on Wednesday will indicate about demand in the world’s second-largest oil consumer.
Higher interest rates from the Fed could curb energy demand, although several analysts say consumption will be strong. Markets now peg the chances of the Fed pausing its interest rate hikes in June at 77%, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
Demand is still expected to be a positive market driver after the release of recent economic data, with the US not in a recession and Europe doing fine, said Rystad Energy research director Claudio Galimberti.
And while China is dealing with a new Covid-19 wave that is limiting traffic temporarily, it will bounce back soon, he said.
Also, “the US economy is about to show a very robust summer travel season that should mean [petrol] and jet fuel demand is going to be very strong,” Oanda senior market analyst Edward Moya said in a note.
