HOUSTON: Oil prices tumbled on Friday, heading for a significant 8% weekly drop due to weaker-than-expected demand, driven by China’s slowing economic growth and shrinking refinery output for the sixth consecutive month.
Brent crude futures fell by $1.69, or 2.27%, reaching $72.74 per barrel by 11:09 am EDT. Meanwhile, US West Texas Intermediate crude dropped $1.72, or 2.43%, to $68.95 per barrel.
Both benchmarks are set for their largest weekly decline since September 2, when OPEC and the International Energy Agency lowered their forecasts for global oil demand for 2024 and 2025.
China, the world’s largest oil importer, reported its slowest economic growth since early 2023, alongside declining refinery output and rising electric vehicle sales, which jumped 42% in August.
