- Oil sheds some of yesterday's gains amid concerns about an economic slowdown
- April ’23 WTI lost 44c this morning to trade around $76.60/Bbl
- China and India released strong manufacturing and oil-sales data yesterday
- Strong manufacturing data from China, the top crude importer, indicated a further recovery in Chinese demand
- India's domestic sales of refined oil products grew strongly in February (BBG)
- Despite a recovery in Chinese demand, prices have been held back by concerns of a slowdown in the economy as the Fed tightens monetary policy in response to high inflation
- Russian crude exports resilient despite the full force of western sanctions (Bloomberg)
- According to Kpler data, Russian shipped 7.32 MMBbl/d of crude and petroleum products in February, which is in line with recent months' exports
- Despite the resilience, Russia's oil exports face new challenges as India, one of its biggest buyers, is under increasing pressure from bankers to show that the cargoes adhere to the $60/Bbl price cap
- More oversight may affect India's purchases of Russian barrels
- Additionally, next month’s exports may also be affected as a result of the Kremlin's decision to reduce oil production by 0.5 MMBbl/d in response to the Western bans