The crude oil market fell further on Tuesday as concerns over disruption to Libyan oil loadings eased, with Brent futures marginally down by 11 cents or 0.14 per cent to $76.97 per barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures losing 9 cents or 0.12 per cent to finish at $73.08 per barrel.
In Libya, local protesters prevented crude oil loadings on Tuesday at Es Sider and Ras Lanuf ports, putting about 450,000 barrels per day of exports at risk.
A group called the Oil Crescent Region Movement demanded that the headquarters of five local energy companies be transferred to the western Libyan region that, as the name suggests, is home to most of the country’s oil industry.
However, fears of this supply disruption eased after Libya’s state-run National Oil Corporation (NOC) said export activity was running normally after it held talks with protesters.
Libya’s daily output stands at 1.41 million barrels daily, with condensate production at some 43,700 barrels daily, which puts the combined crude plus condensates output at 1.65 million barrels daily.
Also, fears of weaker demand linked to soft economic data from China and rising temperatures elsewhere pressured prices.
China, the world’s largest crude oil importer, reported on Monday an unexpected contraction in January manufacturing activity.
Official factory survey showed on Monday that China’s manufacturing activity unexpectedly contracted in January, its weakest since August 2024.
The official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) contracted to 49.1 in January from 50.1 in December, below the 50-mark separating growth from contraction.
This development will keep alive calls for stimulus in the world’s second-largest economy.
Market analysts note that US President Donald Trump’s threat to impose a 10 per cent duty on Chinese imports on February 1 to push the country to clamp down on the trafficking of the chemical precursors of fentanyl risks will expose how reliant its economy is on exports for growth.
China’s crude oil demand is also expected to be hit by the latest US sanctions on Russian oil trade, with the refineries in its region of Shandong losing up to 1 million barrels per day of crude supply.
In the US, weather forecasts indicate a warmer temperature which is also weighing on demand for heating fuels after extreme cold sparked a natural gas and diesel rally in prior sessions.
Also weakening prices, the US Dollar index strengthened on Tuesday amid fresh tariff threats from the Trump administration.
President Trump said on Monday he planned to impose tariffs on imported computer chips, pharmaceuticals and steel.
A stronger Dollar also pressured prices by making oil more expensive for holders of other currencies.