Oil steadied on Tuesday after falling in the previous session as the prospect of a tighter market due to OPEC+ supply restraint offset concern over Chinese growth and uncertainty over the pace of interest rate cuts.
China set an economic growth target for 2024 of around 5%, similar to last year’s goal and in line with analysts’ expectations, but the lack of big ticket stimulus plans to prop up its struggling economy disappointed investors.
Brent crude was up 15 cents, or 0.2%, to $82.95 a barrel by 0911 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $78.53. Brent has gained almost 8% this year.
