Oil prices fell on Friday as hawkish talk from major central
banks stoked recession fears, Trend reports citing Xinhua.
The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for January delivery lost 1.82
U.S. dollars, or 2.4 percent, to settle at 74.29 dollars a barrel
on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for February
delivery dropped 2.17 dollars, or nearly 2.7 percent, to settle at
79.04 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
The pullback came as a raft of central banks including the
Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, and Bank of England
delivered sizable rate hikes this week and stressed a tough stance
against inflation.
“The market started to price in higher interest rates and an
increased risk of recession thereby raising concerns about future
oil demand,” Phil Flynn, senior energy analyst at The PRICE Futures
Group, said Friday in a note.
“We think fears of global oil demand destruction are being
overplayed and we expect a very tight market in the coming months,”
he added.
For the week, oil prices posted gains, with the WTI and Brent up
4.6 percent and 3.9 percent, respectively, supported by
expectations of higher demand in China.
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