WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices slumped on Thursday amid concerns about slow demand recovery.
Benchmark Brent crude tumbled 2.9 percent to $40.54 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 2.6 percent at $38.56 a barrel.
Investors fretted about slow demand growth as coronavirus cases continued to rise and the U.S. Federal Reserve projected recovery from the pandemic would take years.
With U.S. states such as Texas and Arizona reporting an increase of cases since Memorial Day, investors are assessing the risk of a Covid-19 second wave.
Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell said Wednesday that millions of Americans may never get their jobs back and that Congress will probably need to extend additional aid as unemployment remains at historic highs.
On Wednesday, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said the pandemic had triggered the most severe recession in a century.
Worries of a persistent glut also weighed on the commodity after data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed U.S. stockpiles increased by 5.7 million barrels in the week ended June 5 to 538.1 million barrels. Markets were expecting a draw of more than 1.5 million barrels in the week.
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