Oil trades sideways on fears of global economic slowdown – The National

Oil trades sideways on fears of global economic slowdown – The National

Oil prices continued to oscillate, edging lower on Friday over concerns about a slowing global economy and weaker fuel demand, after rallying on strong US economic data and a large draw of American crude inventory.

After gaining more than 3 per cent on Thursday, Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world's oil, was 1.65 per cent lower at $95 at 2.10pm UAE time on Friday.

West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, was up about 2.7 per cent on Thursday, as the latest data from the US Energy Information Administration showed that crude oil stocks for the week ending August 12, excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserves, decreased by 7.1 million barrels from the previous week. However, WTI was down 1.72 per cent at $88.94 a barrel on Friday.