International Crude Oil Benchmarks Plunge to Lowest Prices in Over a Month

Amid Growing Possibility of US Interest Rate Hike, Concerns Over Economic Recession Impact

The benchmark crude oil price indicator approached its lowest level in about a month. Concerns about an economic recession influenced the market amid increasing possibilities of an interest rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed).

According to foreign media including Bloomberg News on the 3rd (local time), Brent crude futures prices on the London ICE Futures Exchange fell 2.0% intraday to trade at $73.84 per barrel. This is the first time since the end of March that the price dropped below $75.

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On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) prices fell below $70 intraday and are trading around $70.12 per barrel, down 2.2%. This is the first time in about a month that WTI prices have fallen below $70.

The market interprets the larger decline in international oil prices as a reaction ahead of the Fed's interest rate hike. The Fed held its regular Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on this day. The benchmark interest rate is expected to be decided after two days of discussions. There are growing forecasts that the rate will be raised by 0.25 percentage points this time.

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