Oil falls as rise in virus cases, U.S. inventories stall recovery - Reuters

Oil falls as rise in virus cases, U.S. inventories stall recovery - Reuters:

Oil prices inched lower on Wednesday, as rising U.S. crude inventories and an increase in U.S. coronavirus infections put the brakes on a price recovery sparked by easing lockdowns.

Brent crude futures fell 19 cents to $42.89 a barrel by 11:23 AM EDT (1523 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 23 to at $40.39 a barrel.

Both benchmarks are set for a fourth session of daily percentage changes of less 1% in either direction, shrugging off news that OPEC member Libya was adding to global supplies by reopening its Es Sider oil terminal for exports.

U.S. Gulf Coast crude oil stockpiles rose by 5 million barrels to a record high of 309 million barrels last week even as refineries hiked output, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.