RIYADH: Oil prices eased on Wednesday, giving up earlier gains after China and Japan reported weak economic data, fueling concerns about growth and oil demand in the world’s top consumers.
Brent crude futures were down 34 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $104.30 a barrel at 0501 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell by 46 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $100.14 a barrel. Both contracts had surged more than 6 percent in the previous session.
China’s crude oil imports slipped 14 percent from a year earlier, extending a two-month slide, as strict measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 impacted demand in the world’s top crude importer.
Russia ready to sell oil at any price range
Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov told Izvestia newspaper that Moscow is ready to sell oil and oil products to “friendly countries in any price range,” the Interfax news agency reported on Tuesday.
Shulginov said crude prices in the range of $80 to $150 a barrel were, in principle, possible but said Moscow was more focused on ensuring the oil industry continues to function, Interfax said.
German lawmakers urge Russian oil embargo
The EU should impose an embargo on Russian oil as soon as possible, the chairmen of three German parliamentarian committees said on Tuesday after a visit to Ukraine.
The EU is drafting proposals for an oil embargo on Russia, although there was no agreement to ban Russian crude. EU diplomats said Berlin, which is heavily reliant on Russian oil, is not actively supporting an immediate embargo.
Germany’s government expects to be able to phase out Russian oil by the end of the year.
On Tuesday, German Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael Roth said cutting Russian oil would be an essential signal because it would affect Russia’s primary source of income.
A quick EU decision could be combined with a transition phase like the import ban on Russian coal, which will come into effect from mid-August after EU ambassadors agreed on it last week, Roth said.
Impact of sanctions on Russian oil to be visible from May: IEA
The full impact of sanctions and buyer aversion to Russian oil will take full effect from May onwards, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday.
“We assume (April) losses will grow to an average 1.5 million barrels per day for the month as Russian refiners throttle back further and buyers shy away,” the Paris-based agency said in its monthly oil report.
“From May onwards, close to 3 million bpd of Russian oil supply could be offline as the full impact of a widening customer-driven voluntary embargo on Moscow comes into effect.”
(With inputs from Reuters)
