By Arunima Kumar
(Reuters) -Oil prices dipped on Tuesday, retreating for a third straight day, as Israel accepting a proposal to tackle disagreements blocking a ceasefire deal in Gaza eased supply concerns, while China’s economic weakness continued to weigh on demand outlook.
Brent crude edged 2 cents lower, or 0.03%, at $77.64 per barrel as of 1236 GMT. Front month U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures, which expire on Tuesday, inched 4 cents lower, or 0.05%, to $74.33.
The more actively traded second month WTI contract was last down 5 cents at $73.61 a barrel.
Both benchmarks are down for a third straight day.
“On the one hand the thinner liquidity in the oil market at present, on the other hand some of the comments from State Secretary Blinken on a possible Gaza ceasefire deal, triggering an unwinding of some oil price spike hedge positions,” UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo told Reuters.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had accepted a “bridging proposal” presented by Washington to tackle disagreements blocking a ceasefire deal in Gaza, and urged Hamas to do the same.
Brent had fallen about 2.5% on Monday, while WTI eased 3%.
“Despite ongoing ceasefire negotiations, clashes between Israel and Hamas continue, and the markets will remain highly sensitive to any developments in the region,” said Rystad Energy’s senior analyst Svetlana Tretyakova.
“If the market fundamentals don’t break this bearish trend soon, OPEC+ may be hesitant to unwind their voluntary cuts anytime soon.”
In China, worries about economic problems weighed on oil prices after a dismal second quarter.
The world’s second-largest economy lost further momentum in July as new home prices fell at their fastest pace in nine years, industrial output slowed, export and investment growth dipped and unemployment rose.
“The main culprit is China, whose economic struggles are mirrored in falling product exports figures, sluggish refinery runs and waning thirst for foreign crude oil,” Tamas Varga, an analyst at oil broker PVM, said.
On the supply side, production at Libya’s Sharara oilfield has risen to about 85,000 barrels per day (bpd) in a move aimed at supplying the Zawia oil refinery.
Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) had declared force majeure on oil exports from the field on Aug. 7 after a blockade by protesters hit production at the 300,000-bpd field.
In the U.S., crude stockpiles were expected to have fallen by 2.9 million barrels last week, a preliminary Reuters poll showed on Monday.
Meanwhile, focus remained on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy path.
(Reporting by Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru, Emily Chow in Singapore and Arathy Somasekhar in Houston; editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Louise Heavens)
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