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China’s oil related commodities futures are slumping. The most-traded crude oil futures contract on the Shanghai International Energy Exchange, for October delivery, slid as much as 2.9% to hit 670 yuan per barrel, before paring loss to 2.4% to 672.9 yuan per barrel as of 11:04 am local time.
The most-traded fuel oil futures contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, for January delivery, tumbled as much as 5.4% to hit 2,738 yuan per tonne, before paring loss to 4.7% to 2,764 yuan per tonne. The most-trade low-sulfur fuel oil future contract on the Shanghai International Energy Exchange, for October delivery, declines by 3.2% to 4,495 yuan per tonne.
In the international market, crude oil prices declined on Wednesday as concerns of sluggish global demand outweighed warnings from President Vladimir Putin about the potential withdrawal of all forms of Russian energy.
Oil prices have been on the wane of late, with new COVID lockdowns in China, one of the biggest sources of concern for crude demand, after the government recently extended a lockdown in the Southwest city of Chengdu. Data released Wednesday showed that Chinese crude oil imports fell 9.4% in August from a year earlier.
Also weighing on sentiment is the chance that the European Central Bank will hike interest rates again on Thursday to combat record high inflation, even as growth in the region slows. German industrial production fell 0.3% on the month in July, illustrating that the outlook for Europe’s largest economy continues to darken.
The Saudis released their official selling prices for October and there were some fairly large cuts for Asia and Europe, indicating weaker anticipated demand.
The negative sentiment surrounding global demand has meant that strongly worded warnings from Russia’s P