Oil prices fell more than 5 per cent on Wednesday amid a deteriorating fuel demand outlook in China, the world's largest crude importer, and growing concerns of a global economic slowdown.
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil, settled 5.2 per cent lower at $77.84 a barrel at the end of trading on Wednesday, while West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, declined 5.3 per cent to $72.84 a barrel.
Crude futures closed more than 4 per cent lower on Tuesday after the International Monetary Fund's managing director said a third of the world's economies could slide into a recession in 2023.
“Oil prices have tumbled again ... by the uncertain near-term economic prospects for China amid surging Covid cases,” said Craig Erlam, a senior market analyst at Oanda.
"While reliable data is seemingly hard to come by, the view appears to be that there'll be significant disruption in the coming months and then a recovery from around the middle of the year which should then boost demand.
"Despite this, the medium-term prospects still appear quite bullish, especially if China can bounce back strongly later this year and fully transition to living with Covid, like much of the rest of the world. Of course, Russia remains the wildcard in all of this, both in terms of its output and influence within Opec+."
The US dollar was weaker on Wednesday making oil cheaper for holders of other currencies.
The US Dollar Index, a measure of the value of the greenback against a weighted basket of major currencies, was down 0.55 per cent at 103.94 on Wednesday after gaining about 1 per cent since January 1.
The index has declined about 6 per cent over the past three months.
“Crude and brent oil prices are on track to record their weekly losses as investors continue to question a number of important factors that are pinning the demand,” said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at AvaTrade.
China's economy is forecast to grow by 4.4 per cent in 2023, after an estimated 3.2 per cent expansion last year and 8.1 per cent growth in 2021, according to the IMF.
A slowdown in China’s economy last year added to global supply chain disruptions and crimped global growth amid renewed Covid-19 outbreaks and the country's zero-Covid approach that led to new lockdowns.
Markets are bracing for minutes from the US Federal Reserve’s December meeting. The minutes offer insights regarding the Federal Open Market Committee’s stance on inflation and overall monetary policy.
“A hawkish tone is unlikely to be positive for oil prices as that would mean a further slowdown in economic growth,” Mr Aslam said.
Last month, the Fed raised its interest rates by 50 basis points to fight inflation and indicated that more increases are planned this year.
It was the seventh time the Fed raised interest rates in 2022. The rates were near zero per cent in March.
Brent averaged $103.70 a barrel last year, gaining about 10 per cent annually, after jumping 50 per cent in 2021, while WTI ended up about 7 per cent last year, after a 55 per cent surge in 2021.
This was the second annual gain for the oil market despite last year's price volatility, which was exacerbated by the Ukraine war that disrupted global supplies.
“Crude prices could struggle here as a strong dollar could be here to stay as investors can’t pass up the yield they are getting in fixed income,” said Mr Moya.
“Manufacturing activity globally mostly appears to be stuck in contraction territory and that might not improve until the end of the quarter.”
In terms of price levels, Mr Aslam said the fact that the crude oil price continues to trade above the important support level of $70 really “differentiates the bull and bear territory”.
UBS expects Brent to trade at $110 a barrel in mid-2023 while WTI is estimated to average $107 a barrel.
China’s reopening may result in oil demand hitting a “record high” in the second half of this year, the Swiss lender said in a research note on Wednesday.
“Meanwhile, Russian oil production should fall in 2023 due to the European Union's embargo on Russian crude and refined products,” UBS strategists said.
An increase in production outside the Opec+ group of countries is expected to be modest given years of underinvestment in new oil and gas projects, they said.
In its December oil market report, the International Energy Agency increased its global oil demand growth estimate for 2023 based on rising crude consumption in India, China and the Middle East.
The IEA expects oil demand to grow by 1.7 million barrels per day in 2023, up from its previous estimate of 1.6 million.
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New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Winners
Ballon d’Or (Men’s)
Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain / France)
Ballon d’Or Féminin (Women’s)
Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona / Spain)
Kopa Trophy (Best player under 21 – Men’s)
Lamine Yamal (Barcelona / Spain)
Best Young Women’s Player
Vicky López (Barcelona / Spain)
Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper – Men’s)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City / Italy)
Best Women’s Goalkeeper
Hannah Hampton (England / Aston Villa and Chelsea)
Men’s Coach of the Year
Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)
Women’s Coach of the Year
Sarina Wiegman (England)
Company%20profile
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Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
Available: Now
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
LEADERBOARD
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Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Zimbabwe v UAE, ODI series
All matches at the Harare Sports Club:
1st ODI, Wednesday, April 10
2nd ODI, Friday, April 12
3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14
4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
What are the main cyber security threats?
Cyber crime - This includes fraud, impersonation, scams and deepfake technology, tactics that are increasingly targeting infrastructure and exploiting human vulnerabilities.
Cyber terrorism - Social media platforms are used to spread radical ideologies, misinformation and disinformation, often with the aim of disrupting critical infrastructure such as power grids.
Cyber warfare - Shaped by geopolitical tension, hostile actors seek to infiltrate and compromise national infrastructure, using one country’s systems as a springboard to launch attacks on others.
TYPES%20OF%20ONLINE%20GIG%20WORK
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The%20team
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ENGLAND SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Jack Butland, Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope
Defenders: John Stones, Harry Maguire, Phil Jones, Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier, Gary Cahill, Ashley Young, Danny Rose, Trent Alexander-Arnold
Midfielders: Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Dele Alli, Jesse Lingard, Raheem Sterling, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fabian Delph
Forwards: Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy, Marcus Rashford, Danny Welbeck
Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
Kandahar%20
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Recent winners
2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)
2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)
2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)
2007 Grace Bijjani (Mexico)
2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)
2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)
2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)
2011 Maria Farah (Canada)
2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)
2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)
2014 Lia Saad (UAE)
2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)
2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)
2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)
2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
