Oil prices started trading this week on a decline, continuing the losses they suffered last week due to concerns about slowing demand in China, but the continued geopolitical risks surrounding the Middle East and Russia limited the decline.
price movement
By 0420 GMT, Brent crude futures were down 55 cents, or 0.67 percent, at $81.53 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was down 58 cents, or 0.74 percent, at $77.43.
Both crudes fell last week, with Brent down 1.8 percent and WTI down 2.5 percent.
Concerns about weak demand in China overshadowed the OPEC+ extension of production cuts, said Hiroyuki Kikukawa, president of NS Trading, a unit of Nissan Securities, adding that mixed signals from U.S. employment data prompted some traders to adjust their positions.
But the growing geopolitical risks will limit the losses, with the possibility of no ceasefire in the war between Hamas and Israel. The conflict between Russia and its neighbors could widen.
China last week set a 2024 economic growth target of about 5 percent, which many analysts described as ambitious without further stimulus.
Data released last Thursday showed that China's crude oil imports rose in the first two months of the year compared to the same period in 2023, but were weaker than previous months, continuing a trend of declining purchases by the world's largest oil buyer.
