Oil is recovering after falling due to recession fears and Russian exports

Oil prices rose on Thursday, recouping earlier losses fueled by fears of a recession in the US and increased Russian oil exports offsetting the impact of OPEC production cuts.

By 0039 GMT, Brent crude was trading at $78.04 a barrel, up 35 cents, or 0.45 percent. US West Texas Intermediate crude also rose 21 cents, or 0.28 percent, to $74.51 a barrel.

This rise comes after oil prices fell about 4 percent on Wednesday, continuing to incur sharp losses from the previous session, after growing fears of a recession in the United States, the world’s largest economy, overshadowed a report showing that US crude inventories fell more than expected.

New orders for key U.S.-made manufacturing goods fell more than expected in March and shipments fell, suggesting lower business spending on equipment slowed economic growth in the first quarter.

US Energy Information Administration data showed a decline in US crude inventories last week by 5.1 million barrels to 460.9 million barrels, far exceeding the average forecast of analysts in a Reuters poll for a decline of 1.5 million barrels.

OPEC’s share of India’s oil imports fell at the fastest rate in 2022-2023 to its lowest level in at least 22 years as cheaper Russian oil increased, while China also ramps up purchases of Russia’s Urals crude.

Sources said oil loading from Russia’s western ports in April would be the highest since 2019, exceeding 2.4 million bpd, despite Moscow’s pledge to cut production. Moscow has also increased fuel supplies to Turkey, Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.