New York — Oil dropped to a two-week low on Wednesday after China proposed a broad range of tariffs that fed fears of a burgeoning trade war with the US, but crude bounced off session lows when US data showed a weekly decline in crude stocks, instead of the increase analysts had expected. China, the world’s largest importer of raw materials, hit back at the Trump administration’s plan to levy tariffs on $50bn of its goods, proposing duties on a broad range of US imports including soybeans, planes, cars, whiskey and chemicals. Brent crude futures fell 47c to $67.65 a barrel, a 0.7% loss, 2.58pm GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 47c to $63.04 a barrel, a 0.7% loss. Both benchmarks slid to two-week lows after the China tariff proposal, with Brent hitting $66.69 and US crude slumping as low as $62.06. Prices pared losses after US crude inventories fell by 4.6-million barrels in the last week, according to data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Anal...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.