Oil futures give up earlier gains on Monday to finish with a modest losses, pressured by prevailing worries over energy demand ahead of U.S.-China trade talks later this week, despite a monthly drop in OPEC output.

Traders are gearing up for scheduled talks between U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators at the end of the week that could help determine the outlook for energy demand.

On Monday, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow told reporters that he's optimistic that trade officials from the U.S. and China would make progress on a deal, and that the U.S. is open to a short-term deal as long as “structural issues” are addressed, according to Fox News.

West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery fell 6 cents, or 0.1%, to settle at $52.75 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The U.S. benchmark snapped an eight-day losing streak on Friday but suffered a 5.5% weekly pullback — its largest since the week ended July 19.

December Brent crude the global benchmark, lost 2 cents to end at $58.35 a barrel. Brent declined 4.4% last week.

Source : Marketwatch