Oil Prices Fell More 3% Due to Increased Fears of Oversupply

Oil prices retreated on Wednesday, losing most of the gains they made the previous day, as increased US crude stocks and a rise in coronavirus cases in Europe and the United States boosted concerns about oversupply and weak demand for fuel.

By 0725 GMT, Brent crude was down $ 40.20 a barrel, after rising nearly 2% yesterday.

US crude futures fell more than a dollar to 38.56 dollars a barrel at 0659 GMT, after rising 2.6% on Tuesday.

The American Petroleum Institute data revealed that US crude and gasoline inventories increased last week, as crude inventories increased by 4.6 million barrels to reach about 495.2 million barrels, which far exceeds the expectations of analysts in a Reuters poll, increasing by 1.2 million barrels.

The United States, Russia, France and other countries have recorded record increases in cases of coronavirus in recent days, and European governments have imposed new restrictions in an attempt to curb the rapid spread of the disease.

It is expected that Libya’s oil production will increase to one million barrels per day in the coming weeks, which will add to the pressure on prices.