Oil prices fell more than 2% on Wednesday as a large build in U.S. crude and gasoline stockpiles signaled weaker demand, while worries about a new China-U.S. trade war fueled fears of softer economic growth.

China's retaliatory tariffs on the United States may cause U.S. oil exports to decline in 2025 for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, after growth plateaued last year. Exports of U.S. crude have surged more than 10 times since it lifted a 40-year federal ban on the export of domestic oil in 2015.

Oil prices fell more than 2% on Wednesday as a large build in U.S. crude and gasoline stockpiles signalled demand weakness while concern about a new China-U.S. trade war fuelled fears of softer economic growth.

China’s state-run refiners are expected to resell US oil cargoes and seek alternative supplies in the aftermath of Beijing’s response to Washington tariffs, a move that is already pushing up the cost of some replacement grades.