Crude oil prices continued to go down on Wednesday as demand concerns weighed on the global markets following the surge of COVID-19 positve cases in China, the world's largest oil importer.
Prospects of China moving away from its rigorous pandemic policy offerred some respite as the authorities aim to promote domestic economic and social development. However, it appears that investors remain concerned that the government's ability to control the spread of the virus nationwide may be hampered by the quick removal of coronavirus regulations, suggesting that the consumption of crude oil in China may drop.
For settlements in February, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) flipped 2.50% to sell at $77.48 per barrell, while Brent tumbled 2.66% to go for $82.00 per barrel at 11:14 am ET.
