Oil drops after Trump's COVID bombshell

Crude's recovery from its spring depths has already been stalled for months as the pandemic's staying power hinders the pace of the demand revival.

• WTI has largely been hanging around the low-$40s range at best since June, a level that ensures continued financial jeopardy for producers.

What they're saying: “Having already had to deal with growing concerns over the demand outlook, the oil market has been unable to escape the broader market sell-off following President Trump’s positive Covid-19 test result,” ING Bank NV analyst Warren Patterson tells Bloomberg.

The big picture: Via AP, "The positive test reading for the leader of the world’s largest economy heaps uncertainty onto a growing pile of unknowns investors are grappling with, first among them how it might affect the Nov. 3 election and American policies on trade, tariffs and many other issues beyond then."