NOVEMBERASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK8Oil prices rose on Oct 27, regaining ground after falling more than $2 per barrel the previous session, as fears of a wider Middle East conflict abated and the United States, the world's largest oil consumer, showed signs of weakening demand. Brent crude futures were up 45 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $88.38 a barrel by 0019 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate was up 42 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $83.63 a barrel.Both contracts are on track for their first weekly drop in three weeks, as the geopolitical premium built on fears that the Israel-Gaza conflict would involve more Middle Eastern countries and disrupt oil supply has diminished."As a trader, I'd have to say we're somewhat out of our league here - trying to ascribe a value to geopolitics when no meaningful supply has been disrupted outside of the Levant," said Kelvin Yew, senior oil trader at Ocean Leonid Investments.Overnight, Israeli forces launched their largest ground attack on Gaza in their 20-day war with Hamas, infuriating the Arab world.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israeli troops were still preparing for a full ground invasion, while the US and other countries urged Israel to postpone the invasion, fearing it would spark conflict on other Middle Eastern fronts. As per Indian government data, China was the top exporter of finished steel to India in the first six months of the fiscal year that began in April. China shipped 0.9 million metric tons from April to September, up 55 percent from the previous year. China, the world's largest steel producer, primarily exported cold-rolled coil or sheets to India, followed by hot-rolled coil products, plates, and pipes, among other things.The Indian steel industry has asked the government for protection against Chinese imports. From April to September, India imported 2.9 million tons of finished steel, a 13.4 percent increase over the previous year.South Korea was the second-biggest exporter to India, shipping 0.9 million tons. However, India remained a net exporter of finished steel during April-September, with 3.2 million tons sold to buyers such as Italy, Spain, Belgium, Nepal and the UAE, the Indian government data showed.According to the data, the most exported products were hot-rolled coil and strips. India's crude steel output was 70 million tons, a 14.7 percent increase over the same period last year. India is the world's second-largest producer of crude steel.Domestic consumption of finished steel increased 14.9 percent year on year to 64.1 million tons. In its report, the government stated that the domestic economic environment remained positive. JSW Steel Ltd's chief executive said this week that the company would continue to focus on domestic sales due to strong demand. NEWSROOMOIL PRICES SPECULATED TO DROP AS MIDDLE EAST CRISIS EASESCHINA INDIA'S MAJOR STEEL EXPORTER, 55 PERCENT INCREASED EXPORT
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