Crude oil futures traded marginally lower on Tuesday morning as the market is waiting for the release of key economic data from the US and China during this week. The US and China are the major consumers of the energy commodity in the world market.
At 9.50 a.m. on Tuesday, November Brent oil futures were at $83.86, down by 0.01 per cent, and October crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $80.07, down by 0.04 per cent.
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September crude oil futures were trading at ₹6,622 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) in the initial trading hour of Tuesday morning against the previous close of ₹6,618, up by 0.06 per cent, and October futures were trading at ₹6,611 as against the previous close of ₹6,609, up by 0.03 per cent.
Data due this week
On Tuesday, data on consumer confidence in the US will be released. Second quarter data on the US gross domestic product will be released on Wednesday. On Thursday, the US is expecting the release of the data on personal consumption expenditures (PCE) inflation.
The US Bureau of Labour Statistics is expected to release the data on non-farm payrolls for August on Friday. Non-farm payrolls data and PCE inflation data are crucial for US Federal Reserve’s plans for future interest rate hikes.
Any hike in the interest rate will impact the demand for the commodities such as crude oil.
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Meanwhile, Purchasing Managers’ Index data for China will also be released during this week. This data will help assess the business activities in that country. Recent economic data from China indicated the difficulties in the revival of economy in that country. A slowdown in that country will impact the demand for crude oil also.
There is a fear in the market that the storm Idalia could impact the supplies in the US, as it is expected to make a landfall in Florida on Wednesday. Market fears that the storm may lead to unfavourable weather conditions along the Gulf of Mexico. This in turn may lead to production shutdown in this region, which produces around one-sixth of the total US oil production. Such developments may lead to supply tightness in the near term.
Jeera, turmeric slip
September zinc futures were trading at ₹216.55 on MCX in the initial trading hour of Tuesday morning against the previous close of ₹215.70, up by 0.39 per cent.
On NCDEX, jeera (cumin) October contracts slipped by ₹98o to 55,510 a quintal, while guar gum October contracts were up ₹8 at ₹13,040 a quintal. Turmeric December contracts slipped ₹342 to ₹15,336 a quintal.