Oil prices fell on Tuesday after data showed that China’s imports and exports declined much more than expected in July, in another sign of weak growth in the world’s largest oil importer, although the losses were limited by the anticipated supply shortage.
Brent crude futures fell to $85.05 per barrel, down 29 cents, or 0.34%, at 06:41 GMT, while West Texas crude recorded $81.69 per barrel, down 25 cents, or 0.31%.
Data from the General Administration of Customs showed that oil imports to China in July reached 43.69 million tons or 10.29 million barrels per day. This was 18.8% less than the imports in June, but still up 17% from last year.
Meanwhile, China’s total imports decreased by 12.4%, and exports declined by 14.5% from the previous year. The pace of export decline was the fastest since February 2020 and worse than analysts’ expectations.
Despite the grim data, some analysts remain positive about the fuel demand outlook in China from August to early October, as crude oil processing rates remained high.
Liu Li, an analyst at CMC Markets, said that the peak season for construction and manufacturing activities begins in September, and gasoline consumption should benefit from summer travel demand. He added that demand is expected to decrease gradually after October.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, said it would extend a voluntary cut in oil production by one million barrels per day for another month to include September, adding that it may extend the cut further or make a larger production cut after September.
Russia also said that it would cut its oil exports by 300,000 barrels per day in September.
