Fears of U.S. Economic Hard Landing Erase Gains from Libya Oil Shutdown

Oil markets have failed to build any kind of sustained momentum over the past couple of weeks, with persistent fears of a hard landing for the U.S. economy outweighing supply disruptions. Crude oil futures surged more than 3% on Monday after Libya's rival eastern government said it is shutting down oil production and exports, adding to gains made the previous week when Fed chair Jerome Powell indicated a start to interest rate cuts in September.  Unfortunately, oil prices have pulled back, with Brent crude for October delivery trading at $79.23/barrel…