Oil slides on U.S.-China tensions - Reuters

Oil slides on U.S.-China tensions - Reuters:

Oil futures tumbled on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he was working on a strong response to China’s proposed security law in Hong Kong and as some traders doubted Russia’s commitment to deep production cuts.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman agreed during a telephone call on further “close coordination” on oil output restrictions, the Kremlin said.

Still, many felt Russia was sending mixed signals ahead of the meeting in less than two weeks between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies.

The group known as OPEC+ is cutting output by nearly 10 million barrels per day (bpd) in May and June.

“It sounds great on paper, but the market is holding back excitement until we get a few more details about whether there will be cuts, how many barrels will be cut, and the length of the cuts,” said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group.

Brent crude LCOc1 futures fell $1.65 to $34.52 a barrel, a 4.6 percent loss. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 was down $1.54 , or 4.5%, at $32.81.