Oil Prices Fall Amid China’s Economic Slowdown and Demand Concerns

Petroluem Price

• Oil prices fell by more than $1 a barrel, losing over 1.5% in early trading on Monday, after disappointing Chinese inflation data and a lack of clarity on Beijing’s economic stimulus plans stoked fears about demand.
• Brent crude futures were down $1.26, or 1.59%, at $77.78 per barrel by 0020 GMT, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell $1.20, or 1.59%, to $74.36 per barrel. MCX Crude oil prices opened at 6,288 with a fall of 1.19%.

Petroluem Demand and Supply

• The negative news from China outweighed market concerns over the lingering possibility that an Israeli response to Iran’s October 1 missile attack could disrupt oil production, though the U.S. has cautioned Israel against targeting Iranian energy infrastructure.
• China’s deflationary pressures worsened in September, according to official data released on Saturday, and a press conference the same day left investors guessing about the overall size of a stimulus package to revive the sputtering economy.
• The consumer price index rose by 0.4%, missing expectations, while the producer price index fell at the fastest pace in six months, down 2.8% year-on-year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Polymer News

• Both oil benchmarks had settled up by 1% on the week on Friday as investors weighed possible supply disruptions in the Middle East and Hurricane Milton’s impact on fuel demand in Florida.
• The U.S. on Friday expanded sanctions against Iran in response to its October 1 attack on Israel, targeting its “ghost fleet” that ferries illicit oil supplies across the globe.
• In the U.S. market, energy firms last week added oil and natural gas rigs for the first time in four weeks, according to a closely followed report by energy services firm Baker Hughes.
• The oil and gas rig count, an early indicator of future output, rose by one to 586 in the week to October 11.
• The impact of Hurricane Milton boosted short-term demand in the U.S. as evacuations supported gasoline consumption, but weak demand continued to dominate the fundamental outlook.

Expert Opinion

• The EIA revised its global oil demand growth forecast for 2025 down by 300,000 barrels per day, citing weaker economic activity in China and North America. U.S. oil demand growth is now expected to rise to 20.5 million barrels per day next year, slightly below earlier forecasts. Additionally, U.S. oil production for 2025 is now expected to average 13.54 million barrels per day, a modest decline from prior estimates