• Oil extended losses after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled the central bank is likely to boost interest rates higher and potentially faster than previously anticipated, raising concerns over a drag on demand.
• West Texas Intermediate futures slipped toward $77 a barrel after closing 3.6% lower on Tuesday, the biggest one-day drop since early January. The remarks, made during a testimony before Congress, opened the door to the Fed lifting interest rates by half a percentage point at the next meeting this month.
• Adding to the bearish sentiment, OPEC Secretary-General Haitham Al-Ghais said slowing oil consumption in Europe and the US poses a concern for the market, even as Asia experiences “phenomenal” growth.
• Oil has had a choppy year as concerns over further monetary tightening from the Fed competed with a bullish outlook for China after the end of COVID Zero.