Oil heads for weekly loss on trade war worries
But traders say crude has been prevented from falling much further by supply cuts led by Opec, adopted late in 2018
London — Oil markets slipped on Friday and were heading for a weekly loss, pulled down by worries about a global economic slowdown, although Opec-led supply cuts and US sanctions against Venezuela provided crude with some support. Weighing on financial markets were concerns that a trade dispute between the US and China would remain unresolved, denting global economic prospects. International Brent crude futures were down 14 US cents at $61.49 per barrel at 8.55am GMT. On the week, they are set for a loss of about 2%, the steepest weekly fall this year. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures stood at $52.46 per barrel, down 18c, and looking at a 5% weekly slump. US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he did not plan to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping before a March 1 deadline set by the two countries to strike a trade deal. If there is no agreement between the world's two biggest economies, Trump has threatened to increase US tariffs on Chinese imports. On Thursday, the ...
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