Oil dipped below $80 a barrel

Oil fell below $80 a barrel in London as investors weighed the outlook for global demand amid concerns about an improving economy.

Crude oil is now close to where it was before the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies announced sweeping output cuts earlier this month. Worsening refiner profits over the past few weeks have left companies considering lower refining rates, and indicators in the Asian crude oil market have continued to decline.

Prices also advanced in financial markets this week, with U.S. stock futures fluctuating on Wednesday and stocks retreating in Europe. A US industry group said there was a big drop in crude inventories nationwide, adding some positivity to oil earlier in the day.

Investors will watch reports this week, including on U.S. jobs, ahead of the Federal Reserve’s May policy meeting. Several world’s largest oil companies, including Exxon Mobil and Chevron, are scheduled to report first-quarter earnings on Friday and comment on the industry’s improvement.

Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia ministers signed a memorandum of understanding with their Azerbaijani counterparts to continue the natural gas supply from Azerbaijan to the European Union.

The memorandum was signed to encourage cooperation between the relevant gas transmission system operators, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR).

It supports the Solidarity Ring, a joint agreement between Bulgartransgaz, Transgaz, FGSZ, and Eustream.

In July 2022, the E.U. Commission signed a document of understanding on a strategic negotiation in the field of energy with Azerbaijan to double the gas supply from the latter to the E.U. market by 2027.

The E.U. has sought to diversify its energy sources away from Russian gas amid Moscow’s military war.

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