Coronavirus is a "black swan" event for oil

The coronavirus outbreak is leaving the energy industry facing the prospect of no overall demand growth for the calendar year. 

The coronavirus outbreak is proving a “true black swan” for oil markets, Warren Pies of Ned Davis Research told CNBC. Chinese demand for oil is down by two to three million barrels per day (mbpd) – roughly a quarter below normal levels. That is leaving the energy industry facing the prospect of no overall demand growth for the calendar year.

Trading above $54 per barrel at the start of this week, Brent crude is down almost 18% since 1 January. America’s benchmark oil future, West Texas Intermediate, fell below the $50 per barrel mark on Monday, a 13-month low.

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Markets editor

Alex is an investment writer who has been contributing to MoneyWeek since 2015. He has been the magazine’s markets editor since 2019. 

Alex has a passion for demystifying the often arcane world of finance for a general readership. While financial media tends to focus compulsively on the latest trend, the best opportunities can lie forgotten elsewhere. 

He is especially interested in European equities – where his fluent French helps him to cover the continent’s largest bourse – and emerging markets, where his experience living in Beijing, and conversational Chinese, prove useful. 

Hailing from Leeds, he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Oxford. He also holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Manchester.