2021.07.2610:15:00UTC+00Oil Prices Dip On Demand Concerns

Oil prices were moving lower on Monday amid concerns about fuel demand from the spread of COVID-19 variants as well as floods in China. The downside appeared capped on signs of tightening supplies.

Brent crude futures for September delivery fell 30 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $73.14 a barrel, while U.S. Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 38 cents, or half a percent, at $71.69.

COVID-19 worries linger, with Russia's total virus cases surpassing 6 million and Turkey reporting a tripling of cases on Sunday compared with earlier this month.

China, the world's largest crude importer, reported 76 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, the highest since the end of January amid a surge of local infections in the eastern city of Nanjing.

China is also battling severe floods and a typhoon in central and eastern parts of the country.

With strong U.S. demand and expectations of tight supplies underpinning prices, investors now look ahead to a Federal Reserve meeting and U.S. oil inventories data for further direction.