The latest blow to the oil markets: Chinese manufacturing activity slows down again! – By Hemantha Yapa Abeywardena   With the latest manufacturing data from China that shows a relative slowdown, compared to March, both the traders and investors have been compelled to accept the inevitable; it is neither easy nor feasible to shore up the oil and gas prices in the current circumstances. According to China’s National Statistics Bureau, the manufacturing manager’s PMI for April was 50.4%,  a drop of 0.4% from that of March; having been below 50% since September, 2023 – the threshold – the key Chinese manufacturing index rose above the latter in March. Investors, not just in oil and gas sectors, breathed a collective sigh of relief, when they noticed a growth in the manufacturing sector in the world’s second largest economy, China. The evolving volatility in the Middle East, coupled with China’s encouraging manufacturing ...

Read More →