Brent crude futures added 27 cents, or 0.37%, to $73.33 a barrel and U.S. WTI crude futures added 31 cents, or 0.45% to $69.53 a barrel
Oil prices rose in Asian trading on Monday, following a more than 7% drop last week on worries about demand in China, the world’s top oil importer, and an easing of concerns about potential supply disruptions in the Middle East.
Brent crude futures added 27 cents, or 0.37%, to $73.33 a barrel by 0625 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures added 31 cents, or 0.45% to $69.53 a barrel.
The gains represented less than 5% of the dollar value both contracts lost last week. Brent had settled down more than 7% lower last week, while West Texas Intermediate declined nearly 8%.
That marked the contracts’ biggest weekly declines since September 2, on slowing economic growth in China and falling risk premiums in the Middle East.
Saudi Aramco’s CEO told an energy conference in Singapore on Monday that he is still “fairly bullish” on China’s oil demand in light of stepped up policy support aimed at boosting growth, and because of increasing demand for jet fuel and liquid-to-chemicals.
China on Monday morning cut benchmark lending rates as expected, part of a wider package of stimulus measures to revive the economy.
Data on Friday had shown that China’s economy grew at the slowest pace since early 2023 in the third quarter, fuelling growing concerns about oil demand.
On the supply side, last week, U.S. energy firms cut the number of oil and natural gas rigs operating for the fourth time in five weeks, as per a closely watched report by energy services firm Baker Hughes on Friday. The rig count declined by one to 585.