LONDON — Oil prices quickly gave back early gains to close lower on Monday after investor concerns about Middle East tensions gave way to a continued focus on weaknesses in global economies.
Earlier in the day, a growing conflictbetween Saudi Arabia and Iran worried investors, sending oil prices higher during the European trading day.
But traders then focused on economic data from China, where equity markets declined sharply on Monday. The signs of a slowdown in China, the world’s biggest economy after the United States, is weighing on prices of various commodities, including oil.
Brent crude oil futures for February, the main international benchmark, settled 6 cents lower at $37.22 a barrel. It had risen as much as 4 percent in Europe on Monday.
In the United States, benchmark crude oil briefly traded over $38, but closed at $36.76 a barrel.
The friction between the Iranian and Saudi governments did serve as a reminder that, despite the sharp fall in oil prices over the last two years, the Middle East, which produces almost one-third of the world’s crude, remains a volatile region
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