$RH PetroGas (T13.SG)$$Rex Intl (5WH.SG)$ Crude prices hit 6...

$RH PetroGas(T13.SG)$ $Rex Intl(5WH.SG)$
Crude prices hit 6-month lows Mon after top importer China released dismal Jul data while the country's central bank cut lending rates to revive demand in an economy clearly slowing from Beijing's continued Covid clampdowns that had impacted factory and retail activity and was squeezing the property market.
Brent crude settled down 3.1% at USD95.10. It earlier hit a session low of USD92.80.
ING Bank cut its forecast for China's 2022 GDP growth to 4%, down from a previous projection of 4.4%, and said a further downgrade was possible. That was after China's refinery output slipped to 12.53 m barrels daily, its lowest since Mar 2020. The head of the world's top oil exporter said it was ready to ramp up output despite signs of a slowing global economy.
"We are confident of our ability to ramp up to 12 m bpd any time there is a need or a call from the government or from the ministry of energy to increase our production, " Aramco's CEO Amin Nasser said.
John Kilduff, founding partner at New York energy hedge fund Again Capital, said: "The Chinese economy is pointing lower, U.S. crude production is rising and leading economies all have problem patches that look set to worsen. And Aramco's hinting at higher production?"
Oil supply could rise if Iran and the United States return to their arrangement from 7 years ago to legitimately allow Tehran to export oil on the condition that it was not making an atomic bomb. But the nuclear deal looks increasingly unlikely as Iran strengthens ties with Russia. Iran with the help of Russia is seeking to finish the guidance systems it requires , to deliver weapons-grade nuclear material in the missiles it already has.
In the United States, total output in the major U.S. shale oil basins will rise to 9.049 m bpd in Sep, the highest since Mar 2020, the EIA said. The peak summer driving season is winding down and fuel demand is expected to drop further in the next 2 weeks after parents cart their children back to school and college for the new academic year beginning in Sep.