The end of the rally? Oil falls with stocks

Oil extended its retreat as disappointing economic data from China helped reignite concerns over economic growth. Futures lost as much as 2.3 percent in New York on Monday, after falling Friday for the first time since late December. The decline mirrored a slide in equities across the globe as China posted its worst import and export figures since 2016 and the U.S. government shutdown dragged on. “Oil is watching the other markets and following,”’ said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group Inc. in Chicago. “We got this weak Chinese data and everything changed.”

Crude entered bull-market territory last week after swooning at the end of 2018 over fears of a worldwide supply glut. Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih on Sunday said the OPEC+ coalition of major oil exporters is on track to shrink supplies and will do more if needed. Yet prices are still down more than 30 percent from a four-year high in October even after the recent rally. While the boss of Italian producer Eni SpA and Oman’s oil minister see the latest rebound holding, doubts persist over demand.

West Texas Intermediate for February delivery was down 0.9 percent to $51.14 a barrel at 11:57 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier dipping to $50.43. Brent for March settlement fell 45 cents to $60.03 on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange, after gaining 6 percent last week. The global benchmark traded at a premium of $8.39 a barrel to WTI for the same month.