Oil falls 1% amid rise in COVID-19 cases, floods

Oil rigs

Oil prices declined 1% on Monday as investors tracked developments related to coronavirus and the floods in China.

The international benchmark Brent crude was trading down 1.1% at $73.30 per barrel, at 9.05 am Makkah time.

WTI crude fell 1.2% to $71.21 per barrel.

“We saw an over-reaction in the market last Monday, and like all other technical corrections so far oil’s downturn has typically proven short lived,” Reuters reported, citing Howie Lee, an economist at Singapore’s OCBC Bank.

“Bargain hunters came in droves when Brent got below $70 and the economic demand for energy looks robust.”

Meanwhile, coronavirus cases continued to rise over weekend with some countries posting record daily increases and extending lockdown measures that could slow oil demand.

China has also seen a rise in COVID-19 cases even as the country battled severe floods and a typhoon in parts of the country.