Shafaq News/Oil prices eased in early Asian trading on Monday as fears of weaker demand intop oil importer China weighed on market sentiment while investors focus on theprogress of ceasefire talks in the Middle East, which could reduce supplyrisks.
Brent crudefutures dropped 13 cents, or 0.2%, to $79.55 per barrel by 0032 GMT. U.S. WestTexas Intermediate crude futures slid 13 cents, or 0.2%, to $76.52 a barrel.
Bothbenchmarks fell nearly 2% last Friday as investors tempered expectations ofdemand growth from China, but ended the week largely unchanged from a weekearlier after a batch of U.S. data last week showed inflation was moderatingand retail spending was robust.
"Persistentconcerns about slow demand in China led to a sell-off," said Hiroyuki Kikukawa,president of NS Trading, a unit of Nissan Securities, adding another factor wasthe approaching end of the peak driving season in the United States.
"Still,tensions in the Middle East and the escalation of the Russian-Ukraine war,which pose supply risks, are underpinning the market," he said.
On Thursday,data from China showed its economy lost momentum in July, with new home pricesfalling at the fastest pace in nine years, industrial output slowing andunemployment rising.
That hasstoked worries among traders about a slump in demand from China, whererefineries sharply cut crude processing rates last month on tepid fuel demand.
Meanwhile,U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv on Sunday on anotherMiddle East tour to push for a ceasefire in Gaza, but Hamas raised doubts aboutthe mission by accusing Israel of undermining his efforts.
Themediating countries - Qatar, the United States and Egypt - have so far failedto narrow enough differences to reach an agreement in months of on-offnegotiations, and violence continued unabated in Gaza on Sunday.
(Reuters)