Oil prices slipped early Thursday, snapping the longest streak of daily gains since January 2019.
Worries about demand are probably to blame for the slight drop after Russia and Saudi Arabia this week pledged to limit production through at least the end of the year to crimp supply. Data from China, the second-biggest economy, added to concerns about growth.
West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, was down 0.5% at $87.11. Its nine-day run of gains was the longest in years, and its finishing price the highest since November. WTI prices are up 8.2% since Jan. 1.
Brent crude, the international standard, was trading 0.4% lower at $90.25 early Thursday. That followed the longest daily winning streak since May 2022 for that contract and it’s up 5% since the start of the year.
Analysts at UBS yesterday predicted that oil prices could rise another 6% by the end of the year.
Figures out of China Thursday showed exports dropped 8.8% in August from a year earlier, while imports fell 7.3%. Imports of oil, however, surged 31%.
Write to Brian Swint at [email protected]
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