Oil prices fell sharply Tuesday as concerns about demand growth in China, the world's largest crude importer, and fears about potentially supply surplus continued to weigh on sentiment just ahead of fresh U.S. crude inventory data.

At 14:30 ET (18:30 GMT), Brent oil futures fell 1.2% to $78.80 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped 1.4% to $74.74 a barrel. 

Serial tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has taken part in today’s X Takeover podcast hosted by the Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Owners Silicon Valley account. It was held on Musk’s X social media platform. Parts of this video have been reposted by various active members of the DOGE army on the same app.

On that podcast, Musk answered a question about what he thinks about Bitcoin now, and also about YouTube videos where he was caught speaking about Bitcoin two years ago.

Gold prices rose in Asian trade on Monday, recovering more ground from a rout through most of July as focus turned to an upcoming Federal Reserve meeting where the central bank is expected to provide more cues on interest rate cuts.

The yellow metal was also aided by weakness in the dollar, which retreated after key inflation data on Friday pointed to some easing in U.S. inflation- a scenario that gives the Fed more confidence to reduce borrowing rates.

The U.S. dollar edged higher in early European trade Monday, helped by a safe-haven bid as tensions rise in the Middle East, while sterling retreats ahead of this week’s Bank of England policy-setting meeting.  

At 04:50 ET (08:50 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, traded 0.2% higher at 104.247.

Oil prices settled higher Thursday after cutting intraday losses after stronger U.S. economy data helped improve sentiment on crude demand just as China oil imports fell. 

At 14:30 ET (18:30 GMT), West Texas Intermediate crude futures expiring in September rose 0.7% to $82.11 a barrel, while Brent oil futures gained 0.5% to $82.11 a barrel. 

Gold prices fell in Asian trade on Thursday, seeing little safe haven demand despite increasing risk-off sentiment as traders rode a sharp appreciation in the Japanese yen. 

A rout in broader commodity markets also raged on, with copper prices extended a sinking to a near four-month low amid persistent concerns over top importer China. Weak readings on manufacturing activity from the U.S., Germany and Japan also soured copper’s outlook. 

Oil prices settled higher Wednesday, recovering from a recent wobble as traders weighed a larger-than-expected dip in U.S. crude inventories against a softer global demand outlook.

At 14:30 ET (18:30 GMT), Brent oil futures rose 0.9% to $81.71 from the Energy Information Administration showed U.S. oil inventories fell 3.7 million barrels in the week ended July 19, compared with expectations for a draw of 2.6 million barrels.

The U.S. dollar traded in a stable fashion in Europe Tuesday, while the yen soared in the wake of suspected intervention by the government last week.  

At 05:40 ET (09:40 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, edged 0.1% higher to 104.067, bouncing from last week’s four-month low. 

Oil prices settled over $2 lower on Friday at their lowest level since mid-June as investors eyed a possible ceasefire in Gaza, while a strengthened dollar drove values down further.

Brent crude prices settled down $2.48, or 2.9%, to $82.63 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped $2.69, or 3.3%, to $80.13.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a long-sought ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas was within sight.

The U.S. dollar edged higher Thursday, while the euro slipped ahead of an ECB meeting and sterling dipped as U.K. wage growth slowed.

At 04:00 ET (09:00 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, traded 0.1% higher to 103.550, bouncing after losses this week on increased optimism that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in September.