Oil futures in unprecedented crash below zero as May contracts end
Output deal by Opec and allied members a week ago to curb supply ‘too little too late’
New York — Oil futures collapsed to below zero for the first time ever as the deepening economic turmoil caused by the coronavirus crisis left traders desperate to avoid taking delivery of physical crude.
In an unprecedented day of trading, the price for the May contracts wiped out all value, breaking every low for oil prices since 1946. The exchange where West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures trade said the contract would be allowed to price below zero. The extreme move showed just how oversupplied the US oil market has become with industrial and economic activity grinding to a halt as governments about the globe extend shutdowns due to the swift spread of the coronavirus...
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