Brent crude slumped below $80 a barrel for the first time since June 10, driven by algorithmic trading and signs of poor demand from China, the world’s top oil importer.

Permian Resources Corp. will buy some of Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s West Texas assets for $817.5 million, it said in a statement.

Global oil demand growth slowed to its weakest in more than a year last quarter as the post-pandemic rebound in China fades, the International Energy Agency said.

WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and 22 other Democratic senators are calling on the Department of Justice to “use every tool” at its disposal to prevent and prosecute alleged collusion and price-fixing in the oil industry.

After years of skepticism, criticism and trader furore, the world’s most important oil price is working better than ever thanks to an infusion of crude from west Texas.

From a dark Houston control room, Rafael Guedes watched on a monitor as a robot took charge of a drilling rig in a North Dakota oil field, locking out the human operator.

Disruptions on the world’s major trade routes, refinery closures and resurgent demand are pushing up global fuel prices in the run-up to a U.S. presidential election.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Saudi oil giant Aramco on March 10 reported it made $121 billion in profit last year, down from its 2022 record because of lower energy prices.

Supply is back in the driver’s seat for global crude markets, as rising production from non-OPEC+ nations including the U.S. may outstrip global demand that’s growing at a slower pace.

Exports of U.S. crude are nearing a record of 6 million barrels a day — flooding the market with oil and weighing on prices from Europe to Asia.