U.S. crude oil futures lost more than 6 percent, the biggest one-day percentage drop in six weeks, as recession fears resurfaced following Wednesday’s bleak economic outlook from the Federal Reserve.
A report today also showed that manufacturing in China, the world’s second-biggest oil consuming country, may contract this month. Price dropped further on concern banks may face difficulty getting funding.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude for November delivery CLX1 settled at $80.51 a barrel, falling $5.41, or 6.3 percent, the biggest one-day decline since Aug. 8, when prices ended down 6.4 percent. The settlement was the lowest for front-month crude since Aug. 9, when prices closed at $79.30. CLc1
November crude traded from $79.66 to $85.00.
Goldman Sachs lowered its three-month forecast for oil in New York, by 15 percent to $97.50 a barrel. The bank’s previous target was $115 a barrel, analysts said in today’s report.
Libya will produce as much as 600,000 barrels a day of oil soon, rising to 1 million barrels in six months, OPEC Secretary- General Abdalla el-Badri said Sept. 19.
