Chinese Oil Rig Conflicting data out of China is causing the oil markets to seesaw a bit, amid confusion over whether or not the world’s second largest economy will help or hinder the price recovery. The bulk of the news streaming out of China continues to look bearish. In its latest Oil Market Report, the IEA revealed that global oil demand increased by 1.4 million barrels per day (mb/d) in the first quarter of 2016, but the growth rate slowed dramatically in the second quarter to just 0.9 mb/d, “caused mainly by sharp deteriorations in China and Saudi Arabia.” China’s demand for gasoline, diesel, bitumen and crude oil are all softer than expected. S&P Global Platts said on July 12 that China’s oil demand in May fell by 2.7 percent to 10.88 mb/d. Startlingly, oil imports were down 41 percent compared with the same month in 2015. Moreover, Chinese […]