RIYADH: Oil prices were little changed on Monday in choppy trading as demand woes after weak economic data from top consumers the US and China were offset by expected crude supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Brent crude futures were flat at $78.47 a barrel at 19:10 Saudi time. They touched their highest in more than two months earlier in the session.

US West Texas Intermediate crude was down 4 cents, at $73.82.

“Oil traders may be cautious ahead of the US CPI (consumer price index) and China’s slew of economic data later this week,” CMC Markets analyst Tina Teng said of inflation data due on Wednesday.

US data last Friday pointed to the smallest job gains in two-and-a-half years but strong wage growth. The figures strengthen the likelihood of the US Federal Reserve raising interest rates at its July meeting.

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester said on Monday that still-strong levels of underlying inflation pressures are pointing the central bank toward more rate rises.

Higher interest rates increase borrowing costs for businesses and consumers, which could slow economic growth and reduce oil demand.

Meanwhile, the appetite from China and developing countries, combined with supply cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, known as OPEC+, are likely to keep the market tight in the second half of the year despite a sluggish global economy, the head of the International Energy Agency said.

Qatar Energy signs 10-year deal with ENOC group to sell condensate 

Qatar Energy has signed a 10-year agreement with the UAE-based Emirates National Oil Co, to supply 120 million barrels of petroleum condensate beginning this month. 

Qatar Energy signed the deal with ENOC Supply and Trading Co., affiliated to the ENOC Group. 

According to Qatar News Agency, Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad bin Sherida Al-Kaabi said the signing of this long-term agreement for the sale of condensate will strengthen Qatar Energy's relationship with the ENOC, which dates back to 2008.  

“We look forward to building on the historical working relationship, and on the confidence in the State of Qatar's exports of condensate, which contribute to enhancing the growth and development that our partners aspire to," said Al-Kaabi, who is also the CEO of Qatar Energy. 

This agreement sheds light on Qatar Energy's strategy related to direct sales operations to end users and building strategic business relations and cooperation. 

The terms of the agreement allow the parties to increase the volumes of condensate included in the contract, as additional quantities of condensate are expected to be exported from Qatar once production starts from the Northeast and South field expansion projects. 

Mexican Pemex estimates loss of 700k barrels of oil   

Mexican oil company Pemex estimates that a deadly fire on a major offshore platform off the southern edge of the Gulf of Mexico has led to the loss of 700,000 barrels of crude oil production so far, the CEO of the state company, Octavio Romero said.   

The fire started early Friday on the Nohoch-A link platform of the company’s Cantarell Field and later moved to a compression complex, killing two people. The fire has since been controlled, the company said.   

“Today, 700,000 barrels of losses have been reflected ... because we closed practically all the wells in the area,” Romero said via the company’s Twitter account.   

As of Saturday afternoon, the executive added 600,000 barrels of production had resumed.   

The company said that searchers were still looking for the person who disappeared after the fire in Cantarell, an emblematic asset producing some 170,000 barrels of oil per day.   

(With input from Reuters)