“The negative pressure on oil means that the economic recovery in China is not really promising, which is hampering the outlook for fuel demand,” said Tina Ting, analyst at CMC Markets.
Official data on Sunday showed Chinese manufacturing activity unexpectedly fell in April, marking the first contraction in the manufacturing PMI since December.
China’s industrial and economic recovery from the coronavirus outbreak is expected to boost demand this year.
Monday’s poll showed expectations for a drop in US crude oil inventories for the third week in a row, which provided some support for the market.
The U.S. Federal Reserve, which meets Tuesday and Wednesday, is expected to raise interest rates another 25 basis points, which could hurt oil by slowing economic growth and reducing demand for energy.
Concerns about the banking sector have also affected oil markets in recent weeks.
In what is the third collapse of a major US institution in two months, US regulators seized First Republic Bank this week before agreeing to a deal to sell most of its shares to JPMorgan.
price movements
Brent crude rose 32 cents, or 0.3%, to $79.61 a barrel at 0725 GMT, and U.S. Nymex crude fell 27 cents, or 0.26%, to $75.94 a barrel , and both crudes fell more than a dollar in their last session, according to Reuters data.”
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