SINGAPORE- Oil prices fell on Monday as a catastrophic second wave of a coronavirus epidemic in India cut short a recovery in oil demand there, offsetting optimism about a strong rebound in demand in developed countries and China in the second half of the year.
Brent crude futures for July fell 15 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $66.61 a barrel while US West Texas Intermediate for June was at $63.48 a barrel, down 10 cents, or 0.2 percent.
State-level restrictions aimed at stemming infections in India have caused fuel sales in the world’s third largest consumer to drop in April, preliminary data shows.
“Overall fuel demand is down by about 7 percent from pre-COVID level of April 2019,” A.K. Singh, head of marketing at refiner Bharat Petroleum Corp said, adding that India’s demand was close to pre-COVID levels in March.
Analysts are expecting India’s demand for transportation fuels to witness a sharper slump in May due to more restrictions.
“Given that it still appears as though COVID-19 in India has not peaked, we expect to see further downside to fuel demand over May,” ING analysts said in a note.
On Sunday, a leading Indian industry body urged authorities to curtail economic activity, as healthcare system has been overwhelmed by the spiraling infections. – Reuters
