Oil Falls by Most in Five Weeks Amid Fear of Chinese Demand Drop

Futures fell 2.5 percent in New York. China’s oil refining dropped the most in three years in July, while crude output retreated from the highest this year. Libya’s biggest oil field, Sharara, cut output by more than 30 percent because of security threats, a person familiar with the matter said. Meanwhile, the dollar strengthened, eroding the lure of commodities as a store of value.

“We’re seeing some strength in the dollar, and the preponderance of news seems to be favoring the bears right now,” Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group Inc. in Chicago, said by telephone. “If you look at the China data this morning, when it came to the China refinery runs being down in July, that’s adding to the perception of slowing demand, and it’s offsetting the concerns about Libyan oil production.”

In the U.S., producers keep drilling for more oil, with the number of active rigs at its highest since April 2015 and the Energy Information Administration forecasting crude output at major shale plays reaching an all-time high of 6.15 million barrels a day in September.

West Texas Intermediate for September delivery fell $1.23 to settle at $47.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the lowest level in three weeks. Total volume traded was about 3 percent above the 100-day average.

Brent for October settlement declined $1.37 to end the session at $50.73 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The global benchmark crude traded at a premium of $3 to October WTI.
more at:  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-13/oil-holds-gains-near-49-as-libyan-output-falls-terminal-shuts