Oil prices fell further Thursday on fears of an economic recession that could undermine oil demand. The price of a barrel of US oil (West Texas Intermediate) is now at its lowest level in about six weeks.
WTI was 1.7 percent cheaper in Singapore on Thursday morning at more than $104 a barrel (of 159 litres). Brent oil fell 1.4 percent to just over $110 a barrel. Earlier this month, oil prices soared above $120 a barrel, propelled by strong demand and tight supply in the oil market, partly due to disruptions to Russian supplies due to the war in Ukraine.
Economists from, for example, investment bank Goldman Sachs had then expected that the price could still rise to 140 dollars per barrel.
But the rise in oil prices has now come to an end for the time being. In particular, last week’s sharp rate hike by the US Federal Reserve against high inflation has put significant pressure on prices as fears the US economy could slip into recession, thus weakening fuel demand in the world’s largest economy. Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned on Wednesday that a recession is possible in the United States.