NEW YORK: Oil prices settled lower on Monday, paring steep losses on weak Chinese economic data after sources told Reuters that OPEC and its allies believe the markets do not need more oil than they plan to release in the coming months. Crude oil processing in China, the world's biggest oil importer, last month also fell to its lowest level on a daily basis since May 2020 as independent refiners cut production in the face of tighter quotas, elevated inventories and falling profits. OPEC+ agreed in July to boost output by 400,000 barrels per day a month starting in August until its current oil output reductions of 5.8 million bpd are fully phased out. Two of the OPEC+ sources said the latest data from OPEC and from the West’s energy watchdog - the International Energy Agency (IEA) - also indicated there was no need for extra oil. Money managers reduced their net-long U.S. crude futures and options holdings in the week to Aug. 10, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Friday.
