SINGAPORE- Oil prices extended declines on Wednesday and posted its largest monthly drop in more than three years as the global trade war eroded the outlook for fuel demand, while fears of mounting supply also weighed.
Brent crude futures fell by 72 cents, or 1.12 percent, to $63.53 per barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 dropped 70 cents, or 1.16 percent, to $59.71 a barrel.
Brent and WTI have lost 15 percent and 16 percent respectively so far this month, the biggest percentage drop since November 2021.
Both benchmarks slumped after US President Donald Trump’s April 2 announcement of tariffs on all US imports. They then sank further to four-year lows as China responded with its own levies against US imports, stoking a trade war between the top two oil-consuming nations.
Trump’s tariffs on imports into the US have made it probable the global economy will slip into recession this year, according to a Reuters poll.
China’s factory activity contracted at the fastest pace in 16 months in April, a factory survey showed on Wednesday.
