Oil prices ended the week lower amid concerns of aggressive interest rate increases by the US Federal Reserve to fight inflation, which could weigh on economic growth.
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil settled 3.6 per cent lower on the previous week at $82.78 on Friday. West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, closed down 3.8 per cent at $76.68 a barrel.
Brent has shed more than 6 per cent after US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell indicated earlier this week that interest rates may need to increase further and at a faster pace than previously anticipated following stronger-than-expected US economic data for January.
“Decelerating growth continues to weigh on crude prices but if fears of a hard landing for the US economy are alleviated, WTI crude could find a home above the $80 a barrel,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda.
Meanwhile, jobless claims in the US increased by 21,000 to 211,000 in the week that ended on March 4, the largest increase in five months, according to the Labour Department.
However, the overall trend still indicates a tight labour market, analysts said.
“The latest reading of both initial and continuing jobless claims suggested a marginal softening in what is still, nonetheless, a tight US labour market,” said Jeanne Walters, senior economist at Emirates NBD.
“The readings should, however, be treated with some caution as they tend to be volatile … and may have been affected by unseasonable weather,” said Ms Walters.
Despite a sharp fall in natural gas prices, the European Central Bank will most probably raise interest rates by 50 basis points this month to tame persistent inflation in the eurozone, ECB President Christine Lagarde said in a report this week.
Annual inflation in the 20 countries that use the euro decreased to 8.5 per cent in February, from 8.6 per cent in the previous month, according to the EU’s statistics agency.
But core inflation, which excludes the food and energy sectors, rose to 5.6 per cent last month, from 5.3 per cent in January, the data showed.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that agreements with the Opec+ alliance remain in “full force”, state news agency Tass reported on Thursday.
“[The agreements] remain in full force until the end of this year, after which the members of the Opec+ group will consider the situation and make new decisions,” said Mr Lavrov at a press conference, following a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan.
The group of 23 oil-producing countries slashed its collective output by 2 million barrels per day in October last year as concerns of an economic slowdown weighed on the outlook for fuel demand.
An economic recovery in China, the world’s largest crude importer, is set to drive crude oil demand to record levels this year, according to the International Energy Agency.
Earlier this week, Opec Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said he was “cautiously optimistic” on China's reopening but warned that a slowdown in the US and the EU could dampen crude oil demand in 2023.
“There is phenomenal demand growth in Asia [but] what concerns us more is actually the slowdown we see in Europe and the US in terms of the financial situation [and] the inflation,” Mr Al Ghais said at the CeraWeek energy conference in Houston on Tuesday.
Last month, Opec raised its 2023 oil demand forecast by 100,000 bpd amid expectations of an economic rebound in China.
The group expects global oil demand to grow by 2.3 million bpd this year, which is higher than its previous growth estimate of 2.2 million bpd.
China alone will count for about 500,000 bpd to 600,000 bpd of the demand improvement, the Opec chief said.
Full list of Emmy 2020 nominations
LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Don Cheadle, Black Monday
Ted Danson, The Good Place
Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method
Eugene Levy, Schitt’s Creek
Ramy Youssef, Ramy
LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Christina Applegate, Dead to Me
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Linda Cardellini, Dead to Me
Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek
Issa Rae, Insecure
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
OUTSTANDING VARIETY/TALK SERIES
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Steve Carell, The Morning Show
Brian Cox, Succession
Billy Porter, Pose
Jeremy Strong, Succession
LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show
Olivia Colman, The Crown
Jodie Comer, Killing Eve
Laura Linney, Ozark
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve
Zendaya, Euphoria
OUTSTANDING REALITY/COMPETITION PROGRAM
The Masked Singer
Nailed It!
RuPaul’s Drag Race
Top Chef
The Voice
LEAD ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE
Jeremy Irons, Watchmen
Hugh Jackman, Bad Education
Paul Mescal, Normal People
Jeremy Pope, Hollywood
Mark Ruffalo, I Know This Much Is True
LEAD ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE
Cate Blanchett, Mrs. America
Shira Haas, Unorthodox
Regina King, Watchmen
Octavia Spencer, Self Made
Kerry Washington, Little Fires Everywhere
OUTSTANDING LIMITED SERIES
Little Fires Everywhere
Mrs. America
Unbelievable
Unorthodox
Watchmen
OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Dead to Me
The Good Place
Insecure
The Kominsky Method
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Schitt’s Creek
What We Do In The Shadows
OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES
Better Call Saul
The Crown
The Handmaid’s Tale
Killing Eve
The Mandalorian
Ozark
Stranger Things
Succession
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
- Argyll and Bute, Scotland
- Fife, Scotland
- Tower Hamlets, London
Day 1, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Dimuth Karunaratne had batted with plenty of pluck, and no little skill, in getting to within seven runs of a first-day century. Then, while he ran what he thought was a comfortable single to mid-on, his batting partner Dinesh Chandimal opted to stay at home. The opener was run out by the length of the pitch.
Stat of the day - 1 One six was hit on Day 1. The boundary was only breached 18 times in total over the course of the 90 overs. When it did arrive, the lone six was a thing of beauty, as Niroshan Dickwella effortlessly clipped Mohammed Amir over the square-leg boundary.
The verdict Three wickets down at lunch, on a featherbed wicket having won the toss, and Sri Lanka’s fragile confidence must have been waning. Then Karunaratne and Chandimal's alliance of precisely 100 gave them a foothold in the match. Dickwella’s free-spirited strokeplay meant the Sri Lankans were handily placed at 227 for four at the close.
How being social media savvy can improve your well being
Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.
As social media apps are becoming more and more consumed by health experts and nutritionists who are using it to awareness and encourage patients to engage in physical activity.
Elizabeth Watson, a personal trainer from Stay Fit gym in Abu Dhabi suggests that “individuals can use social media as a means of keeping fit, there are a lot of great exercises you can do and train from experts at home just by watching videos on YouTube”.
Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.
Torrena said that “most people believe that dieting and keeping fit is boring”.
However, by using social media apps keeping fit means that people are “modern and are kept up to date with the latest heath tips and trends”.
“It can be a guide to a healthy lifestyle and exercise if used in the correct way, so I really encourage my clients to download health applications” said Mrs Torrena.
People can also connect with each other and exchange “tips and notes, it’s extremely healthy and fun”.
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
MATCH INFO
Everton v Tottenham, Sunday, 8.30pm (UAE)
Match is live on BeIN Sports
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