Shafaq News/ Oil prices eased for a third day onFriday and were on track to fall for the week as investors focused onexpectations of increased output from Libya and the broader OPEC+ group,although fresh stimulus from top importer China limited losses.
Brent crude futures fell 20 cents, or 0.28%, to$71.40 per barrel as of 0433 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crudefutures were down 14 cents, or 0.21%, to $67.53.
On a weeklybasis, Brent crude was set to shed 4%, while WTI was on track to slide 6%.
Thoughinvestors across asset classes cheered after Chinese authorities finallyreleased bolder stimulus, oil markets seem fixated on Libya and OPEC this week,said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova.
"Therecent decision by OPEC+ to ramp up production has only added to thegloom", said Sachdeva, adding that the oil market has been struggling withweakening demand over the past few months.
"Whileit's uncertain whether Chinese stimulus will translate into higher fuel demand,it may still offer some respite to the oil market."
China'scentral bank on Friday lowered interest rates and injected liquidity into thebanking system as Beijing ramps up stimulus to pull economic growth backtowards this year's roughly 5% target and fight deflationary pressures.
More fiscalmeasures are expected to be announced before China's holidays starting on Oct.1, after a meeting of the Communist Party's top leaders showed an increasedsense of urgency about mounting economic headwinds.
Meanwhile,rival factions staking claims for control of the Central Bank of Libya signedan agreement to end their dispute on Thursday. The dispute had caused a sharpreduction in oil production and exports in the country, with crude exports downto 400,000 barrel per day (bpd) this month, from over 1 million barrels lastmonth.
Theagreement could see more than 500,000 bpd of Libyan supply return to markets,ANZ Bank analyst Daniel Hynes said.
Separately,the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and its allies, agroup known as OPEC+, are currently cutting oil output by a total of 5.86million bpd but plans to reverse 180,000 bpd of those cuts in December.
A mediareport on Wednesday claimed the previously announced reversal is due to SaudiArabia's decision to abandon a $100 oil price target and gain market share,causing oil prices to slide by 3% in the previous session.
SaudiArabia, the de facto leader of OPEC+, has repeatedly denied targeting a certainoil price, and sources at the wider group told Reuters that the plans to raiseoutput in December do not represent any major change from existing policy.
"All inall, it is evident that oil markets remain very cautious about global oilbalances in 2025 and what OPEC+ "should do", with the recent bearishmood being underscored by the record low net length across ICE Brent contractsfor managed money positioning," analysts at FGE Energy told clients onThursday.
(Reuters)