Oil supply and demand concerns

Oil prices fell for a fourth day as an improving supply outlook weighed on a market struggling with sluggish demand from top importers. U.S. crude fell 1.8 percent on Wednesday to trade below $79 a barrel. The Biden administration is in talks with Venezuela to temporarily lift sanctions that have been holding back oil sales. That comes on top of a surge in exports from Iran. Crude prices began rallying in late June but have faltered over the past few weeks amid worsening economic conditions in China, which has signaled U.S. interest rates should remain high for longer. That has overshadowed a tightening market amid supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and Russia. The restrictions led to a sharp decline in global oil inventories last month. U.S. crude inventories fell by 6.1 million barrels last week, the lowest since December, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. "We see oil prices trading in a range in the short term as the tug-of-war between demand fears and supply tightening continues," said Han Zhong Liang, investment strategist at Standard Chartered Plc.