Oil prices fall over 1% as Fed hikes interest rates | Reuters

Oil prices fall over 1% as Fed hikes interest rates | Reuters

Oil prices fell more than 1% on Wednesday as the Federal Reserve raised its target interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point amid demand woes and as U.S. oil production reached pre-pandemic levels.

Brent crude futures for August were down $1.7, or 1.5%, at $119.46 a barrel by 2:07 p.m. ET (1705 GMT), having fallen as low as $119.26 earlier in the session. It briefly turned positive, rising 2 cents, after the rate hike announcement.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for July fell $2.21, or 1.8%, to $116.72 a barrel, after dropping to a low of $116.15.

The rate hike was the biggest by the U.S. central bank since 1994, and markets worry it could slam fuel demand. read more