Singapore April 11 2025: Oil prices fell on Friday and were set to drop for a second week on concerns prolonged trade war between the United States and China, the world’s largest economies, will crush crude consumption as their dispute curtails economic growth.
Brent futures fell 31 cents, 0.5%, to $63.02 a barrel by 0153 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures lost 36 cents, or 0.6%, to $59.71. Both benchmarks settled over $2 lower on Thursday.
Brent is set to fall 4% this week, adding to an 11% drop in the prior week, while WTI is set to decline 3.8%, after also falling 11% in the previous week.
A prolonged trade dispute between the U.S. and China is likely to reduce global trade volumes and disrupt trade routes, and eventually weigh on global economic growth. As the world’s two largest oil consumers, that will also impact crude consumption.
Oil prices have come “under pressure amid ongoing concerns about a global economic slowdown,” Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ, said in a note on Friday. He added the bank forecasts that if global economic growth falls below 3%, oil consumption will decline by 1%.
