Oil prices fell slightly on Monday as fears of a global recession took precedence over investor optimism, while natural gas fell to a new 16-month low.
The barrel of Brent from the North Sea for delivery in March lost 0.30% to 85.02 dollars.
Its American equivalent, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in February, fell 0.18% to 79.72 dollars.
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The previous week, the two oil benchmarks gained more than 8%, reversing their losses from the first week of the year, following China abandoned its zero-Covid health policy.
While China’s outlook has taken a turn, it should be noted that the normalization of its oil demand will be gradual, analysts point out.
Investors are awaiting the market outlook this week from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its monthly oil supply and demand report, and that of the International Energy Agency (IEA). .
With MAP