Oil falls 3rd day on US stock build, surging Covid-19 cases

Oil prices fell for a third day on Thursday as a surprise build in US crude inventories and a resurgence of Covid-19 cases in India and Japan raised concerns that a recovery in global economy and fuel demand may slow.

Brent crude futures fell 57 cents, or 0.9 per cent, to $64.75 a barrel by 0157 GMT, following a drop of $1.25 on Wednesday. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 58 cents, or 1.0 per cent, at $60.77 a barrel, after losing $1.32 on Wednesday.

Both contracts dropped more than 2 per cent on Wednesday, closing at their lowest since April 13. They are down more than 3 per cent so far this week.