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China, the world's second-largest oil consumer, announced a cut in interest rates for the third time in six months over the weekend as the government attempts to tackle a decline in the nation's once-rampant growth.
Analysts are still cagey about saying the oil price has recovering after a sharp and sustained fall which began in the summer of 2014 and has seen prices drop by more than half, the Wall Street Journal says.
Brent has appeared to rally in recent weeks – but a month-long "winning streak" was bucked last week, says the WSJ, with Brent down 1.6 per cent. Nymex crude, however, rose by 0.4 per cent last week.
The sustained slump brought more bad news for the UK's oil production sector at the weekend as North Sea oil firm Fairfield Energy announced it will decommission its Dunlin Alpha platform. The North Sea oil industry is struggling to cope with low prices, with worrying prospects for jobs in Scotland.
The BBC reports that production from all Dunlin cluster fields will shut down in mid-June. The Dunlin Alpha platform will remain "fully manned and operational" to export third-party oil into the Brent system pipeline in the meantime.
The Dunlin field is situated 300 miles north-east of Aberdeen, just a few miles from Norwegian waters. It began production in 1978, peaking at 120,000 barrels a day in 1979. The decommissioning process is expected to cost £400m.
Fairfield chief executive David Peattie said: "The Dunlin asset has now achieved maximum economic recovery.
"Taking into account the asset's lifecycle, the depressed oil price and challenging operational conditions in the North Sea, starting the decommissioning process is the most appropriate action."
Meanwhile, the US government has given Royal Dutch Shell permission to drill for oil and in the Arctic Ocean, an area estimated to have 20 per cent of the world's undiscovered oil and gas, in a major victor to the company and the wider industry. Environmental groups were quick to condemn the decision, calling it "reckless and irresponsible".
However, the low oil price will help avoid a "gold-rush" scenario, says Time magazine. The falling oil price has forced oil companies to tighten their belts and they are increasingly reluctant to invest in Arctic waters due to the high cost of exploration and drilling in the region.
This has been good news for the environment, says Norwegian foreign minister Boerge Brende. "We should be very happy that there was not a 'gold rush,'" he said. "A 'gold rush' is not positive; it's throwing oneself at resources at breakneck speed. The Arctic is a very vulnerable area where we have to go step by step."


Read more: http://www.theweek.co.uk/oil-price/60838/oil-price-fluctuates-as-china-announces-new-stimulus#ixzz3ZwJpPc9q


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