Oil drops between COVID-19 cases in US, China

At 5:30 am, the barrel of North Sea Brent for October delivery was down 3.89% at $ 67.95 in London, down from Friday’s close.

In New York, the US barrel WTI lost 4.19% to $ 65.42 in September.

Two benchmark deals lost nearly 7.5% last week.

“Demand is worrying oil traders as delta variant cases are on the rise in the United States,” said Naeem Aslam, an Avatrade analyst.

The coronavirus has resurfaced among the world’s largest crude consumers since early July and the number of new daily cases has crossed the 100,000 mark, the highest ever since February, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

At the same time, China’s second largest consumer, but also the world’s largest crude importer, “has been battling the worst episode of COVID-19 since the beginning of the epidemic,” said Stephen Brennak of PVM.

Authorities facing the revival of COVID-19 in dozens of cities have been ordered to control the population of entire communities and to take measures such as disruption of internal transport links and maintenance of large screenings.

Beijing China has tightened sanctions on foreign travel.

“This return to tougher controls will darken the outlook for energy demand in the country,” Brennak said, “along with signs that the economy is cooling.”