The prices of oil slid on Monday after rising Covid Cases prompted fears of a slowdown in demand. Brent crude oil, the global benchmark, declined more than 4% to trade at $65.50 per barrel. The contract was as low as $65.50 per barrel.
“The biggest challenge for oil markets remains the uncertainty around COVID as the ‘delta variant’ has made for the highest daily case counts since early 2021,” said analysts at Bank of America.
Currently, China is the world’s second-largest oil consumer, with 9.7 million barrels per day in July, which was 4th below 10 million barrels per day, according to analysts.
Oil is slowly recovering and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is up 40% for 2020. In July the contract was as high as $76.98, a price not seen since 2014.
“The oil market is likely to remain rangebound here as the physical market is poised to remain in a deficit through the end of the year,” said Tom Essaye, editor of the Sevens Report.