Oil prices have retreated today, as new cases of the virus "Corona" hit China, Japan and the United States, exacerbating fears that the disease may return to a widespread outbreak that could harm the recovery of fuel demand.
Brent crude futures fell 15 cents, or 0.4%, to $ 38.58 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate U.S. crude fell 49 cents, or 1.3%, to $ 35.77 a barrel.
Warren Patterson, director of commodity strategy at ING, said: "A serious wave of cases will definitely add to concerns that a recovery in demand may take longer than previously thought."
After about two months without any new cases, officials in Beijing announced 79 cases of Corona virus over the past four days.
Cases began to increase in the United States as well, with more than 25,000 additional cases recorded on Saturday alone with more states reporting a record number of new infections and hospitalizations due to illness.
Economic data from China came in below expectations. Industrial production increased 4.4% in May compared to the same period a year ago, but the less-than-expected increase indicates that the recovery path for the world's second largest economy will be turbulent.
In spite of this, Chinese refineries increased their productivity in May by 8.2% in May compared to the same period a year ago to reach about 13.6 million barrels per day.