Daily Times

Crude oil prices decreased more than one percent on Wednesday as poor economic data from China offset the impact of geopolitical tensions.

As of 1255 hours GMT, Brent, the international benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s oil, shed $1.23 (-1.57 percent) to reach $77.06 a barrel. Similarly, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main oil benchmark for North America, went down by $1.33 (-1.84 percent) to $71.07 a barrel.

Brent ended last week lower by 0.60 percent, falling to $78.29 a barrel from $78.76 a barrel on a week-on-week, while WTI closed last week down to $72.68 from $73.81 a barrel, registering a weekly decline of 1.53 percent. Both benchmarks shed more than 10 percent in 2023 on a year-on-year basis.

On the other hand, the price of Russian Sokol decreased by $0.48 (-0.67 percent) to $71.24. Arab Light prices witnessed a decrease of $0.54 (-0.69 percent) to reach $78.16 a barrel. Similarly, the price for Opec Basket decreased to $79.17 a barrel with a dip of $1.01 (-1.26 percent). The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of Saharan Blend, Girassol, Djeno, Zafiro, Rabi Light, Iran Heavy, Basra Light, Kuwait Export, Es Sider, Bonny Light, Arab Light, Murban and Merey.