Global growth fear pulls oil lower
But Hurricane Michael limited the losses, shutting down 40% of Gulf of Mexico production
Tokyo — Oil prices edged lower on Wednesday after the IMF lowered its global growth forecasts but prices were supported as Hurricane Michael churned towards Florida. Nearly 40% of US Gulf of Mexico crude output has been shut down as the storm approaches. Brent crude futures were down 21c at $84.79 a barrel by 4.34am GMT, after a 1.3% gain on Tuesday. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down 34c or 0.5% at $74.62 a barrel, after rising nearly 1% in the previous session. The International Monetary Fund downgraded its global economic growth forecasts for 2018 and 2019 on Tuesday, potentially tempering demand for oil and its products. Trade tensions and rising import tariffs were taking a toll on commerce, while emerging markets were struggling with tighter financial conditions and capital outflows, the IMF said. “Prices are peaking at the most opportunistic time given the waning global growth narrative,” said Stephen Innes, head of Asia Pacific trading at Oanda in Singapore. In ...
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