The US Department of Labor released a report stating that the number of initial jobless claims in the US increased by 0.02 million people, reaching the highest level in ten months. It is expected that this data will provide further space for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.
In early Asian trading today, ICE Brent crude oil futures prices fell due to the strengthening of the US dollar and concerns about the weakness of the US economy.
As of 12:00 Beijing Time, the September contract price of Brent crude oil futures was $84.75 per barrel, down 36 cents from the settlement price on July 18, while the contract was up 3 cents from the previous trading day when it expired on July 18.
The August contract price of WTI crude oil futures was $82.34 per barrel, down 48 cents from the settlement price on July 18, while the contract fell 3 cents from the previous trading day when it expired on July 18.
On July 18th, the US dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of other currencies, rose, which could put pressure on oil prices. A stronger dollar could dampen oil demand as the cost of imported crude oil, which is priced in dollars, would be higher.
On July 18th, the US Department of Labor reported that in the week ending July 13th, the number of initial jobless claims increased by 20,000 to 243,000, the highest level in the past 10 months. This data partly reflects the impact of the hurricane that hit Texas last week, but also shows the gradual weakness of the job market, which could provide further room for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.
On July 18th, the European Central Bank (ECB) kept the main interest rate in the euro zone unchanged. The Bank lowered the interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.75% at its last meeting on June 6. The ECB said that its management committee is determined to ensure that inflation returns to the medium-term target of 2% in a timely manner, and pointed out that although some basic inflation indicators in May rose due to one-time factors, most indicators remained stable or slightly down in June.
On July 18th, the United States imposed sanctions on a network of companies accused of assisting in the sale of Iranian oil to China to fund the Houthi rebels in Yemen, involving five ships and one company. Since 2019, a total of 282 oil tankers and other vessels accused of assisting Iran's oil and other commodity exports have been on the US sanctions list, including 48 oil tankers added by the Treasury this year.
(The above content is from Argus, an independent international energy and commodity price assessment agency)