A second wave of the virus is threatening US oil demand again

After months of empty roads, lockdowns were easing and people were getting behind the wheel again. A station in Northern California was selling gasoline for a whopping $5.98 a gallon.

Then the coronavirus struck again — in a fierce way. Californians, Floridians and Texans are back in hiding, and the recovery in driving that had restored highway travel nationwide back to 85% of last year’s levels is looking more fragile than ever.

As lockdowns eased and parts of the world reopened for business, driving emerged as the transportation mode of choice and offered some relief for the oil market just two months off of its worst collapse in history. But the fresh resurgence of the virus in the three states with the country’s biggest gasoline markets is threatening to take American drivers off the road and stymie what has been a remarkable recovery for oil.