Lower the price of oil

NY. The price of Texas intermediate oil (WTI) started the week this Monday with a drop of 1.12%, to $78.79 a barrel, after China announced on Sunday that its growth target will be around 5%, below from the one set last year, which was between 5% and 5.5%.

At 9:00 am local time, WTI futures contracts for April delivery were down $0.89 from the previous day’s close.

The reference barrel in the United States begins the week with a drop, after last year it achieved an accumulated revaluation of more than 4%, mainly due to the good economic data from China and the expectations that its demand will increase after the lifting of restrictions to contain covid-19.

However, the data published on Sunday by the Chinese authorities does not seem to have finished convincing Wall Street investors who expected more ambitious figures, despite the fact that they meet analysts’ forecasts.

“This year, it is essential to prioritize economic stability and seek growth while ensuring stability,” said the outgoing Prime Minister, Li Keqiang, during the opening of the annual session of the National People’s Congress (ANP, Legislative), before recalling that “the foundations of stable growth (still) need to be consolidated”.

Last year, although Beijing had forecast growth between 5% and 5.5%, the Chinese economy only grew 3.5% due to the harsh restrictions and confinements imposed as part of its ‘zero covid’ policy in the face of the worst waves of infections since the start of the pandemic.