# AP Explains: The oil market meltdown and its global impact | AP News

> Oil markets melted down as coronavirus outbreaks cut travel and transport, sharply reducing fuel demand; Brent had fallen from $69 at the start of the year to about $50. OPEC and non-member countries then failed to agree on a proposed production cut of 1.5 million barrels a day.

- Date: 2020-03-09 · published 2020-03-09T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: geopolitics · region Global · magnitude high
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/4420-ap-explains-the-oil-market-meltdown-and-its-global-impact-ap-news
- Commodities: [Crude Oil (Brent)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/BRENT.md), [Crude Oil (WTI)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/WTI.md), [Soybean Oil](https://feedsoft.ai/c/SBO.md)

## Why it matters

Combined demand destruction and a failed supply cut point to a glut, keeping crude and related energy prices under downward pressure and weighing on biofuel-linked feed inputs.

## Read by commodity

- SBO: bearish ▼
- WTI: bearish ▼
- BRENT: bearish ▼

## Linked price moves

| Commodity | Date | Window | Change % | z-score | Why linked |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| BRENT | 2020-03-12 | 5 | -39.5% | -12.1 | It explains the two-sided shock: coronavirus travel curbs cut fuel demand while OPEC+ failed to agree on a 1.5 mb/d cut. |
| BRENT | 2020-03-09 | 1 | -22.5% | -10.0 | Explains the demand-side coronavirus shock and the failed OPEC+ agreement on a 1.5 mb/d cut as the combined backdrop for the meltdown. |

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| BRENT | 2020-07-31 | [OPEC+ plans to pump more crude into a precarious global oil market](https://feedsoft.ai/events/52006-opec-plans-to-pump-more-crude-into-a-precarious-global-oil-market.md) | +4.9% | +4.7% |
| BRENT | 2025-06-25 | [Why have oil prices declined and what are the potential implications? \| Explained - The Hindu](https://feedsoft.ai/events/9616-why-have-oil-prices-declined-and-what-are-the-potential-implications-explained.md) | -1.1% | +1.5% |
| BRENT | 2020-03-16 | [Chart of the Month \| A Price War Erupts in the Oil Market](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7664-chart-of-the-month-a-price-war-erupts-in-the-oil-market.md) | -20.5% | -23.3% |
| BRENT | 2025-06-23 | [Latest Oil Market News and Analysis for June 24 - Bloomberg](https://feedsoft.ai/events/9998-latest-oil-market-news-and-analysis-for-june-24-bloomberg.md) | -11.9% | -9.9% |
| BRENT | 2025-06-20 | [Diesel and Gas. The Energy Report 06/20/2025 - Market InsightsMarket Insights](https://feedsoft.ai/events/8644-diesel-and-gas-the-energy-report-06-20-2025-market-insightsmarket-insights.md) | -13.2% | -10.3% |
| WTI | 2020-07-31 | [OPEC+ plans to pump more crude into a precarious global oil market](https://feedsoft.ai/events/52006-opec-plans-to-pump-more-crude-into-a-precarious-global-oil-market.md) | +5.2% | +7.7% |
| WTI | 2025-06-25 | [Why have oil prices declined and what are the potential implications? \| Explained - The Hindu](https://feedsoft.ai/events/9616-why-have-oil-prices-declined-and-what-are-the-potential-implications-explained.md) | +1.8% | +3.1% |
| WTI | 2020-03-16 | [Chart of the Month \| A Price War Erupts in the Oil Market](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7664-chart-of-the-month-a-price-war-erupts-in-the-oil-market.md) | -35.6% | -29.5% |

## Sources

- apnews.com: https://apnews.com/article/prices-financial-markets-ap-top-news-germany-virus-outbreak-7454e80dbc04e723bb6586b7dbb0aec2

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.