Oil falls on demand concerns, dollar strength

Oil prices fell in early trade on Friday amid concerns about demand growth through 2025, especially in China, the world’s largest crude importer, putting global benchmarks on track to end the week down about 3%.

Brent crude futures were down 41 cents, or 0.56%, at $72.47 a barrel by 0420 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 39 cents, or 0.56%, at $68.99 a barrel, Reuters reported.

China’s state-owned refiner Sinopec said in its annual energy outlook released on Thursday that China’s imports could peak in 2025 and the country’s oil consumption would peak by 2027 as demand for diesel and gasoline weakens.