WTI faces intraday lows on demand worries

Crude oil is facing fresh lows on the day as commodities are served a new blow by news on China’s covid levels and probable lockdown risks.

Global growth concerns and the Iran deal talks are affecting oil’s price action. prices are continuing downside on Thursday as a combination of the lockdowns in China and concerns over global growth accelerate.

At the time of writing, WTI crude oil is trading lower by 3.1% having hit a fresh low for the session of $86.40 per barrel.

WTI fell from a high of $89.63 on the day as doubts over demand accumulate following news that Chengdu has become the latest Chinese city to be locked down as Beijing continues to pursue its controversial zero-Covid policy.

Factory activity slumped in August as China’s zero-COVID curbs and cost pressures continued to hurt businesses. The PMIs released by CFLP (China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing) showed a second consecutive month of contraction in the manufacturing sector while the non-manufacturing outlook also moderated in August.