Oil prices decline nearly 2%

Oil prices declined on Thursday, falling nearly 2%, amid a rise in global COVID-19 cases and after official figures showed a rise in US crude inventories.

Brent crude was trading down 1.9% at $83.01 per barrel, at 2.50 pm Makkah time. The international benchmark slipped to $82.32 earlier in the session, marking the lowest level in two weeks.

WTI crude fell 1.9% to $81.10 per barrel.

US crude stocks rose by 4.3 million barrels, in the week ended Oct. 22, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA) data.

Outbreaks of coronavirus infections in China and record deaths and the threat of lockdowns in Russia, along with rising cases in western Europe have put oil prices under pressure.

"A surge in new cases of COVID-19 threatens to disrupt the recovery in oil demand," Reuters reported, citing a report from ANZ Research.

Elsewhere, US Bureau of Economic Analysis will release later today the first readings of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) for Q3 2021, amid expectations of an economic growth of 2.8%.