The price of Texas intermediate oil (WTI) fell 0.7% on Monday and closed at US$80.72 a barrel as concerns about the prospects for crude demand prevailed.
At the close of business on the New York Mercantile Exchange (nymex), WTI futures contracts for September delivery were down US$0.53 from the previous day.
He reference barrel In the US, the day began with a rise after losing 2.78% of its value last week, but it ended with a drop due to doubts about the Chinese economy and the rate path of the Federal Reserve (Fed).
This Monday, the People’s Bank of China (BPC) announced that it was lowering its reference rate for loans by ten basis points, from 3.55% to 3.45%, thus undertaking the second reduction this year, although it has been less aggressive than estimated.
The decision comes after some indicators that point to a weak evolution of the Chinese economy and that are added to a worrying situation of the real estate of the country, especially after the bankruptcy of the giant Evergrande.
The possibility that this affects the demand for fuels in the country, which is one of the largest consumers in the world, is weighing on the market.
This week, investors are watching Friday’s central bankers’ meeting in jackson holewhere the president of the Fed, Jerome Powell, will intervene in search of clues about the foreseeable new increases in interest rates.
On the other hand, futures contracts for natural gas for September they added US$0.08, up to US$2.63, and gasoline maturing in the same month subtracted US$0.05, up to US$2.77.