Oil Prices Slip on Thin Trading

30 Dec 2024 , 10:55 AM

Ahead of the year-end, oil prices fell Monday in light holiday trading as traders anticipated additional economic data from the U.S. and China later this week to gauge growth in the two biggest oil consumers in the world.

Brent crude futures down 6 cents to $74.11 a barrel, while the more active March contract was down 6 cents at $73.73 a barrel.

At $70.52 per barrel, U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 8 cents.

A greater-than-expected decrease from U.S. crude stockpiles in the week ending December 20 as refiners increased activity and the holiday season increased gasoline demand helped both contracts rise by roughly 1.4% last week.

Optimism for China’s economic expansion in the upcoming year, which may increase demand from the country that imports the most crude oil, also helped oil prices.

Chinese officials have decided to sell a record 3 trillion yuan ($411 billion) in special treasury notes in 2025 in an effort to boost growth, according to a Reuters story last week.

In a separate statement, the World Bank increased its prediction for China’s economic growth in 2024 and 2025, but cautioned that the country would continue to struggle in the coming year due to weak business and household confidence as well as challenges in the real estate market.

The U.S. ISM survey for December, which is scheduled to be issued on Friday, and China’s PMI factory surveys, which are due on Tuesday, are of interest to investors.

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