Oil prices fall 2% below $80 per barrel – this week

Oil prices fell about 2%, and Brent crude fell below $80 a barrel, amid a decline in investors’ expectations for growth in demand from China, the largest oil importer. Brent crude futures fell $1.36, or 1.7%, to $79.68 a barrel in settlement.

US West Texas Intermediate futures rose $1.51, or 1.9%, to $76.65 a barrel. On the weekly level, there was no significant change in prices. Data from China showed on Thursday that the economy lost momentum in July as new home prices fell at the fastest pace in nine years, industrial production slowed and the unemployment rate rose. On the other hand, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) reduced its demand forecasts for this year, noting weak prospects in China For its part, the International Energy Agency pointed out weak demand in China as well when it reduced hours for 2025 on Tuesday. Oil prices rose early last week as traders awaited a response from Iran to retaliate against the Zionist entity following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas political bureau, last month in Tehran.

LNG prices in Asia increased to their highest levels in more than eight months, as the relative increase in temperature boosted demand for energy for cooling purposes, according to estimates from industry sources. In Europe, the TTF gas price reached an eight-month high of $12.70 per million British thermal units. The increasing demand for gas, from Asia and Europe, along with geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the Russia-Ukraine war, pushed the price of gas to rise. European gas storage levels reached 88.47 percent, which is close to the target level of 90 percent. In the United States, natural gas futures fell more than 3 percent on Friday, hitting their lowest level in a week, amid expectations of less hot weather than expected, and an oversupply of gas in storage. , although a government report showed its decline. The US Energy Information Administration said Thursday that utilities withdrew 6 billion cubic feet of gas from reservoirs during the week to August 9, bringing stocks down to 3.264 trillion cubic feet.

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