Oil sees steepest fall in two weeks

Oil drilling rigs

Oil deepened its losses today, Feb. 20, despite prospects of a recovery in Chinese demand and market expectations of higher prices in light of supply cuts.

Brent crude futures for April delivery fell 1.45%, or $1.22, to close at $82.34 per barrel—marking the largest decline since the Feb. 2.

WTI crude for April delivery (the most active) lost 1.8%, or $1.42, to $77.04 per barrel.

China also reduced the reference interest rate on five-year loans, which is used to price mortgage interest, by 0.25%. This marks the largest rate of reduction since the start of the reference price policy in 2019.

Citigroup analysts expect oil prices to rise to $100 per barrel during the next 12 to 18 months, with geopolitical risks escalating alongside OPEC+ deepening production cuts.