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The latest wave of brutal crude sales has been reduced to less than $ 51 per barrel for the first time since October 2017.
Concern over oversupply and declining demand has pushed crude oil down by a third since its four-year high of over $ 76 a barrel in early October. Observers have gone from fear of oil to $ 100 to worry about why its price has collapsed so quickly.
"The relentless six-week sale was disturbing to say the least," said Michael Haigh, head of commodity research at Societe Generale on Wednesday.
Oil tankers hope that OPEC and Russia will come to the rescue by announcing major production cuts at a meeting in Vienna next month. However, President Donald Trump is pressuring Saudi Arabia and OPEC not to reduce their production despite falling prices. Traders are worried Trump's recent praise for Saudi Arabia indicates that the Saudis will not support a significant reduction in production.
For the week, oil prices in the United States are down nearly 10%.
Lukman Otunuga, research analyst at FXTM, described the weekly sale as "brutally bearish".
The global benchmark, Brent, dropped 5.5% on Friday and dropped to a new low of 2018, or $ 59 a barrel.
The merger was triggered by a series of developments that clouded the energy outlook. Prices soared during the summer as Trump swore to cut Iranian oil exports. This has led Saudi Arabia, Russia and especially the United States to increase their production.
However, the Trump administration later adopted a less stringent approach to sanctions imposed by Iran to prevent oil from escaping. Officials granted temporary waivers to China, India and other buyers of Iranian crude. This error has left the oil market looking for a potential overabundance.
At the same time, fears of global growth have emerged on the financial markets. Economists are cutting their GDP forecasts for 2019. Germany and Japan, the world's 3rd and 4th economies, are already in contraction. China is slowing too. None of this is optimistic for oil, which is fueling the global economy.
"The increase in the global supply of crude, combined with worrying signs of slowing demand, is a recipe for the oil market disaster," Otunuga wrote to his customers on Friday.
The rapid collapse of oil prices has surprised many people, including hedge funds that have made outrageous bullish bets on crude earlier this year. According to Societe Generale, large commodity funds have accumulated losses exceeding $ 7.7 billion so far this quarter.
"The sentiment in commodities markets has been discouraged," wrote Haigh.
The fall in energy has come at the right time for consumers. Millions of Thanksgiving travelers were greeted at the discount pump. The average gallon gallon hit $ 2.58 on Friday, down significantly from $ 2.84 a month ago, according to AAA.
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