Oil declines as traders weigh G-7 crude ban, Saudi price cuts

Oil declined as the week’s trading kicked off as investors weighed a pledge by the Group of Seven to ban imports of Russian crude against a cut in official prices by Saudi Arabia and China’s lockdowns.

West Texas Intermediate fell toward $109 a barrel after closing at a six-week high on Friday. The leaders of the most-industrialized countries made the vow in response to President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine after holding a video call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Sunday. A similar plan by the European Union has yet to be agreed as some members object.

Saudi Arabia cut prices for buyers in Asia as coronavirus lockdowns in China weigh on consumption in the top importer. State-controlled Saudi Aramco lowered prices for the first time in four months, dropping its key Arab Light grade for next month’s flows to $4.40 a barrel above the benchmark it uses.