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August 17, 2018 at 03:52 PM
Oil posted its biggest weekly loss in five weeks and its longest run of weekly declines in three years on lingering fears of an emerging market demand slowdown and building U.S. stockpiles. Futures added 0.7 percent in New York amid a slipping dollar, strengthening copper and another labor strike at North Sea oil and gas platforms. But, prices remained lower on the week. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. crude benchmark, dropped 2.5 percent this week, the most since July 13 as turmoil in Turkey and the continued Chinese-American tariff battle rattled investor concerns about demand.
Oil has retreated more than 11 percent from the three-year high reached in June as concerns about the global economy grow just as OPEC and its allies revive production. Oil supplies have also appeared more plentiful as U.S. crude inventories expanded by the most since 2017, OPEC raised output in July and Libya recovered some halted production.
“The general indicators have been very bearish here as of late,” said Bob Yawger, director of futures division at Mizuho Securities USA LLC. “The EIA report was one of the most bearish reports in recent memory.”
Oil clawed back with copper on Friday amid a weakening dollar, which helped oil, analysts said.
“The perception is that maybe the situation is not as bad as it was on Wednesday,” Yawger said. Cooper is considered “good indicator of Chinese demand for all commodities,” he said.
West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery settled at $65.91 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up 45 cents. Total volume traded was about 49 percent below the 100-day average.
