Oil futures end lower as demand worries outweigh forecasts for supply deficit

Oil prices settled lower on Wednesday, shaking off earlier gains fueled by a forecast from the International Energy Agency for potential global supply deficit in the fourth quarter. The latest U.S. inflation reading ran on the “hot side,” especially on the core figure, which will “bolster the case for a ‘higher for longer’ Fed policy rate outlook, said Tyler Richey, co-editor of Sevens Report Research. That raises the threat that the central bank “chokes off growth and sends the economy into recession,” which is never a good scenario for oil demand. October West Texas Intermediate crude
CLV23,
-0.29%
fell 32 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $88.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after ending Tuesday at their highest front-month contract price of the year so far.