Oil prices continued to decline today, Thursday, for the sixth consecutive session, under pressure from a group of complex factors, as the Federal Reserve indicated that it is scheduled to start Reducing asset purchases within months, hurting commodities and supporting the dollar.

West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.4 percent this morning to below $65 a barrel, the lowest since May, and the international benchmark Brent also fell below $65 a barrel. $68 a barrel.

Brent contracts ended the trading session yesterday, Wednesday, down 80 cents, or 1.2%, to record at a settlement of $68.23 a barrel. The global benchmark has experienced a loss of 11% in the past 13 trading sessions.

Most Fed officials agreed last month that they might start slowing the pace of bond-buying later this year, according to the minutes of their July meeting, which Released yesterday, Wednesday.

Additional downward pressure on crude oil came from a mixed report on oil and derivatives inventories from the US Energy Information Administration.

Despite the decline in crude oil stocks, there was a sudden rise in gasoline stocks, indicating that the demand for fuel is under threat from the spread of the delta variable.

Oil lost momentum in the first half, during July and August, amid the threat to demand posed by the spread of the delta, including in main importer China.

The dollar's gains in recent weeks have also acted as a drag on prices, making US-priced goods more expensive. At the same time, OPEC+ moved forward with the gradual restoration of supplies.

To protect the US economy from the blow of the pandemic, the Federal Reserve purchased $120 billion in assets a month, sending commodities and stocks into a rebound.

Federal meeting minutes showed that most participants now thought it might be appropriate to start scaling back the program.

On the other hand, isolated New Zealand was forced to impose a new nationwide lockdown for the first time since the initial response more than a year ago, and cases have since risen.

In the meantime, Australia suffered its worst day since the pandemic began.