Brent slides as investors await Federal Reserve’s meeting minutes

Front-month ICE Brent has moved downwards by $0.90/bbl on the day, to $82.36/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

PHOTO: The Federal Reserve headquarters in Washington D.C. Founded in 1913, the Fed is the central bank of the US. Getty Images

Upward pressure:

Predictions vary greatly but Chinese oil demand is forecast to grow by a substantial 500,000 b/d to 1 million b/d this year.

“Refiners in China continue to ramp up purchases. Companies including PetroChina and Unipec have hired at least 10 supertankers to carry shipments from the US next month," writes ANZ commodity strategist Daniel Hynes.

Downward pressure:

Waiting for the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s February meeting, many investors fear that a further rise in interest rates could tilt the US economy into recession.

Eurozone manufacturing activity has dropped by 0.3 points this month, to 48.5, according to Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data released by S&P Global.

“Crude prices are struggling as global growth concerns return after soft European manufacturing activity data is accompanied with a surge in global bond yields. Central banks globally are about to take policy into even more restrictive levels and that is countering China’s reopening momentum," says Ed Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.

By Nitin Sharma

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