Crude oil prices were down at early trading on Monday as an initial partial trade deal between the U.S. and China failed to impress investors with its lack of details, keeping global oil demand low.
International benchmark Brent crude was trading at $59.84 per barrel at 0630 GMT for a 1.1% decline after closing Friday at $60.51 a barrel.
American benchmark West Texas Intermediate was at $54.09 a barrel at the same time for a 0.85% loss after ending Friday at $54.70 per barrel.
On Friday, the U.S. and China reached the first phase of a trade deal that remained unresolved for 18 months, however the details given given were sparse.
While the U.S. agreed not to increase the rate of tariffs on $250 billion of Chinese goods this week, China will purchase $50 billion worth of American agricultural products. Beijing also agreed to address the U.S.' concerns about intellectual property and financial services.
However, major points of the trade dispute that are still unresolved, like technology transfer and intellectual property theft, have investors concerned that phase one of the deal is not enough to engender an optimistic outlook for the markets.
While it could take weeks for the world's two largest economies to finalize a comprehensive trade deal, it is possible that negotiations could break down once again, leaving global oil demand and prices low.
Despite U.S. President Donald Trump calling the first phase of the deal 'very substantial,' most analysts view it as a 'temporary truce.'
By Ovunc Kutlu
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr