U.S. oil prices settle at their lowest since mid-July

Oil futures fell for a second straight session on Wednesday, with U.S. prices ending at their lowest since mid-July. The commodity was “hammered by demand concerns” after the American Petroleum Institute reported a huge rise in crude inventories in the week ended Nov. 3, said Lukman Otunuga, manager, market analysis at FXTM. Sources said the trade group reported a weekly increase of 11.9 million barrels. “The sharp jump in inventories could be the product of various forces, with demand fluctuations on the list,” said Otunuga. “Nevertheless, this report has added more fears around the demand side of the equation.” December West Texas Intermediate crude
CLZ23,
+0.76%
fell $2.04, or 2.6%, to settle at $75.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That was the lowest front-month contract finish since July 17, according to FactSet data.