Oil prices have entered a bear market , having shed most of the gains made after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as concern about a supply …
Oil prices have entered a bear market, having shed most of the gains made after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as concern about a supply crunch appeared to ebb and international diplomacy efforts made a release of Iranian oil more likely. Brent crude futures fell by a modest 0.1% to $99.75 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate lost 0.3% to $96.15 a barrel Wednesday. Oil surged in the first week or two as Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine triggered a sharp reduction in demand for Russian oil, and commodity traders raced to find alternative sources of fuel to avoid any form of sanctions or restrictions. Prices have now shed around $10 since the beginning of this week and unwound most of the gains made since the start of the war almost three weeks ago. Brent is now down 22% from March 8, when it hit as much as $139.13 a barrel, which was its highest in 14 years. A drop of more than 20% from a recent high is considered bear-market territory.
