Oil rises nearly 2% as robust China trade data offsets returning supply | Reuters

Oil rises nearly 2% as robust China trade data offsets returning supply | Reuters:

Oil prices rebounded on Tuesday, supported by robust economic data from China that offset returning supply in other regions but gains were capped by forecasts for a slow recovery in global oil demand as coronavirus cases rise.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 ended up 73 cents, or 1.8%, to $42.45 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 futures settled up 77 cents, or about 2%, to $40.20 a barrel. On Monday, both benchmarks fell nearly 3%.

China, the world’s top crude oil importer, took in 11.8 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil in September, up 5.5% from August and up 17.5% from a year earlier, but still below the record high level of 12.94 mln bpd in June, customs data showed.

“Oil prices, which suffered quite a blow the previous day, were looking for a bright spot and Tuesday offered just that,” said Rystad Energy’s senior oil markets analyst Paola Rodriguez-Masiu.