WTI moves below $81.50 as IEA forecasts a slowdown in Oil demand growth

• WTI price depreciates as the IEA expects global Oil demand growth to slow in 2024 and 2025.
• IEA stated that China’s share of global demand will decline to around 40% from last year’s 70%.
• US Crude Oil Stocks declined by 3.443 million barrels, against the expected decline of 3.0 million barrels.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Oil price retraces gains from the previous session, trading around $81.40 per barrel during European hours on Thursday. Crude Oil prices are under pressure as the International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that global Oil demand growth is expected to slow to just under a million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024 and 2025, according to Reuters.

In its monthly Oil report, the IEA noted that global demand in the second quarter increased by 710,000 bpd year-on-year, marking the smallest quarterly rise in over a year. This slowdown is attributed to reduced Chinese consumption amid economic challenges. The IEA stated, "China’s pre-eminence is fading. Last year the country accounted for 70% of global demand gains; this will decline to around 40% in 2024 and 2025."

Traders await the upcoming US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for June, set to be released on Thursday, for more insights into the Federal Reserve's (Fed) monetary policy direction. Higher interest rates affect the US economy, the largest Oil consumer in the world, which in turn impacts crude Oil demand.

Oil prices found some support due to a larger-than-expected drawdown in US crude inventories. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a decline of 3.443 million barrels in US Crude Oil Stocks for the week ended July 5, surpassing the expected decrease of 3.0 million barrels.