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Oil futures fell sharply Thursday, sinking after President Donald Trump imposed a ban on travel from Europe to the U.S. in an effort to contain the coronavirus pandemic.
West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery CL.1, -6.43% dropped $1.91, or 5.8%, to 31.07 a barrel, while May Brent BRNK20, -6.29% tumbled $2.02, or 5.6%, to $33.77 a barrel.
Trump spoke from the Oval Office Wednesday night, detailing government plans to address the spreading coronavirus outbreak. Most notably, Trump said travel between Europe and the U.S. will be suspended for 30 days for foreign nationals, beginning Friday.
“A number of factors are responsible for the renewed nose-dive: US President Trump for instance has imposed a 30-day U.S. entry ban for Europeans in response to the corona crisis. This comes as another serious blow to international aviation and is likely to have a negative impact on kerosene demand. Oil demand thus remains under pressure,” said Carsten Fritsch, analyst at Commerzbank, in a note.
Crude oil was previously under pressure, falling sharply Wednesday, as Saudi Arabia fired another salvo in its price war with Russia by moving to expand production capacity. Also Tuesday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries cut its forecast for global oil demand.
April gasoline RBJ20, -11.94% plunged 12.4% to $97.23 cents, while April heating oil HOJ20, -7.95% dropped 7.6% to $1.1432 a gallon.
April natural gas NGJ20, -4.79% dropped 4.7% to $1.79 per million British thermal units.
