# Oil plunges 7% hit by swelling output and darkening outlook | Financial Post

> Oil prices tumbled more than 5% on Tuesday, with U.S. crude settling down 7.3% at $46.24 a barrel. Reports that U.S. supply would keep surging even as demand weakens drove the decline. Brent settled at $56.26, and both benchmarks have fallen more than 30% since early October.

- Date: 2018-12-18 · published 2018-12-18T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: market · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/8520-oil-plunges-7-hit-by-swelling-output-and-darkening-outlook-financial-post
- Commodities: [Crude Oil (WTI)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/WTI.md), [Crude Oil (Brent)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/BRENT.md)

## Why it matters

Surging U.S. supply against weakening demand signals sustained crude oversupply, which lowers energy and freight costs for feed buyers. Lower oil also reduces the economic incentive for biofuel-linked feedstock demand.

## Read by commodity

- WTI: bearish ▼
- BRENT: bearish ▼

## Linked price moves

| Commodity | Date | Window | Change % | z-score | Why linked |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| BRENT | 2018-12-20 | 5 | -10.5% | -3.0 | Reports of surging US supply amid weakening demand drove the Dec 18 drop, with Brent settling at $56.26. |
| BRENT | 2018-12-24 | 5 | -12.6% | -3.8 | Covers the same Dec 18 selloff, with surging US supply and weakening demand pushing both benchmarks lower. |

## Sources

- financialpost.com: https://financialpost.com/commodities/energy/update-7-oil-drops-4-pct-on-oversupply-equities-sell-off
- financialpost.com: https://financialpost.com/energy/update-7-oil-drops-4-pct-on-oversupply-equities-sell-off/

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