Oil Prices Jump on Chinese Economy, Syria Conflict and Hurricane Joaquin

The Wall Street Journal reported that modest improvements in China’s economy, the growing conflict in Syria and a hurricane on the US East Coast all contributed to a jump in oil prices on Thursday.
As quoted in the market news:

Light, sweet crude for November delivery recently gained $1.62, or 3.6%, to $46.71 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent, the global benchmark, gained $1.12, or 2.3%, to $49.49 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.
China’s official purchasing managers index, a gauge of nationwide manufacturing activity, ticked up slightly last month to 49.8 from 49.7 in August, beating analysts’ expectations. The price of copper and other base metals also strengthened following the release of the Chinese data.
Evidence of a “soft-landing” in China and slowing but not halted global economic growth is the first thing that needs to happen to get investors buying into energy stocks again, Simmons & Co. International said in its morning note. Fears of a staggering China pummeled oil prices and other commodities this summer because China is the world’s second-biggest oil consumer.
“The latest data point may suggest that the stimulus program in China may finally be starting to have a positive impact on China’s sluggish economy,” Dominick Chirichella, analyst at the Energy Management Institute said in a note. “If so manufacturing should then continue to expand and thus oil demand growth could start to also increase accordingly.”

Click here to read the full Wall Street Journal report.