Oil futures ended sharply lower on Thursday amid rising concerns about outlook for energy demand due to worries about a recession and on reports showing a surge in Covid-19 cases in China.<\/p>\n
Oil prices fell on worries that aggressive rate hikes by major central banks may lead to a global economic slowdown and dent fuel demand.<\/p>\n
Disappointing manufacturing data from China, Japan, the U.K., and the euro area weighed substantially on oil prices.<\/p>\n
The dollar’s sharp uptick on rate hike concerns hurt oil prices. The dollar index rose to a fresh 20-year high at $109.98 before paring some gains.<\/p>\n
Investors are betting that the U.S. Federal Reserve and the ECB will both raise their key borrowing costs by 75 basis points when they meet later this month.<\/p>\n
West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September ended lower by $2.94 or about 3.3% at $86.61 a barrel, after falling to a low of $85.98 a barrel in the session.<\/p>\n
Brent crude futures were down $3.63 or 3.8% at $92.01 a barrel a little while ago.<\/p>\n
According to a Reuters report, Southern Chinese tech hub Shenzhen tightened COVID-19 curbs as cases kept increasing. Large events and indoor entertainment<\/span> were suspended for three days in the city’s most populous district, Baoan.<\/p>\n The euro area manufacturing activity shrank for the second straight month in August, adding to fears of recession in the currency bloc, final survey data from S&P Global showed.<\/p>\n The final factory Purchasing Managers’ Index declined to a 26-month low of 49.6 in August from 49.8 in the previous month. The flash score was 49.7. The reading was below the neutral 50.0 mark for the second straight month.<\/p>\n Final survey results from S&P Global showed the UK manufacturing sector registered its sharpest contraction since May 2020 on steep decreases in production and order intake. The Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply factory Purchasing Managers’ Index fell to 47.3 in August from 52.1 in July. But the score was above the flash estimate of 46.0.<\/p>\n The manufacturing sector in China fell into contraction territory in August, the latest survey from Caixin showed on Thursday with a manufacturing PMI score of 49.5.<\/p>\n That’s down from 50.4 in July, and it moves beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. <\/p>\n