Recession fears sends WTI lower

Fears of a recession in the United States sent crude oil prices lower Tuesday as many investors doubted that even the Federal Reserve’s surprise three-quarters of a percentage point rate would be able to turn back the inevitable.

February contracts for West Texas Intermediate crude, which were due to expire at the end of the day’s session, was down 72 cents to $89.85 per barrel at the close of floor trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange after having dropped as low as $86.11 per barrel just before the Fed’s decision was announced.

March WTI contracts, more active on the day, fell 71 cents to $89.21 per barrel, while March contracts for Brent crude were 72 cents higher to $88.23 per barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London after dropping to $85 per barrel in earlier trade.

Nymex February gasoline was 2 cents lower to $2.28 per gallon.

Not long before the close of trade in New York, March natural gas had dropped 32 cents to $7.62 per million British thermal units.