Oil prices slip as worsening Covid-19 threatens recovery in fuel demand

Oil prices dipped on Monday, weighed down by the prospect that a rise in the pace of coronavirus infections could derail a recovery in fuel demand.

Brent crude was down 10 cents, or 0.2%, at $43.04 a barrel by 0047 GMT, after dropping slightly last week. U.S. oil was off by 6 cents, or 0.2%, at $40.53 a barrel, after gaining 4 cents last week.

“With global daily Covid-19 case counts still rising and the U.S. Sunbelt most populous states showing little success in bending and containing the (epidemic’s) curve, concerns about the post-Covid recovery pace are limiting the upside for oil,” said Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at Axicorp.

More than 14 million people have been infected by the novel coronavirus globally and nearly 602,000 have died, according to a Reuters tally.