The oil market sank to a four-year low on Monday, 7 April 2025, after Washington threatened further tariffs in response to Beijing’s latest retaliatory levies, reinforcing fears of an escalating US-China trade war.
Oil prices plunged to three-year lows on Friday amid escalating trade tensions between the world’s largest economies. Adding weight to sentiment was the prospect of supply disruptions from a key oil export diminished.
Lower refinery utilisation rates also contributed to the rise in crude stockpile. Data from EIA showed that refiners in the country operated at approximately 86% through the week, down by 1 percentage point from the week before.