Oil takes sudden plunge, loses 2.4 percent
Benchmark crude fell $2.38, or 2.4 percent, to finish at $96.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That's the biggest percentage decline since July 23. Oil plunged below $95 per barrel during the sell-off.
By SAMANTHA BOMKAMP
The Associated Press
9/17/2012
NEW YORK — Oil plunged suddenly Monday afternoon, dropping more than $4 per barrel at one point in a dramatic end to an otherwise quiet trading day in New York.
Benchmark crude fell $2.38, or 2.4 percent, to finish at $96.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That's the biggest percentage decline since July 23. Oil plunged below $95 per barrel during the sell-off.
Traders were unsure of the cause of Monday's price drop. Some questioned whether an errant trade or another rumor about a release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve was to blame.
The White House has been considering tapping the SPR to stem the rising cost of crude and gasoline. A little over a week ago, Reuters reported the Obama administration was considering a release much larger than the 30 million barrels from last year.
Oil rose 2.7 percent last week and touched a high above $100 a barrel after getting a boost from the Federal Reserve's latest plan to spur the U.S. economy. Concerns that unrest in the Middle East over an anti-Islam film could trigger supply disruptions were a contributing factor.
Brent crude, which is used to price international varieties of oil, fell sharply as well. Brent lost $2.91, or 2.9 percent, to $113.77 a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange in London.
The Trucker staff can be reached to comment on this article at editor@thetrucker.com.
Find more news and analysis from The Trucker, and share your thoughts, on Facebook.