The West Texas Intermediate for June delivery fell 1.31 U.S. dollars, or 2.1 percent to settle at 62.05 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for July delivery decreased 1.55 dollars, or 2.3 percent. to close at 65.11 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
The above moves followed a major setback on the oil market, which saw the U.S. crude benchmark and Brent sink 3.25 percent and 2.98 percent, respectively.
"The growing risk aversion among investors and possible rapprochement in the nuclear dispute between the U.S. and Iran put oil prices under considerable pressure yesterday," Eugen Weinberg, energy analyst at Commerzbank Research, said in a note on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the latest U.S. inventory data were unable to halt the price slide.
U.S. crude oil inventories increased by 1.3 million barrels during the week ending May 14, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a report on Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts had forecast the EIA publication to show a fall of 2.9 million barrels in U.S. crude supplies.
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