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US oil prices more than 28% collapse
(CNN) - Oil prices in the United States were negative for the first time on Monday: the great oil collapse of 2020 took a strange turn.
Crude finished at $ -37.63 a barrel, marking the only time it has been below zero since oil futures began trading on the NYMEX in 1983.
The historical collapse shows how terribly the oil market has been oversupplied. There are real fears that the world will soon run out of places to store barrels.
Producers are essentially PAYING to get rid of their barrels.
Part of the reason oil was so volatile is that trading volume was so light on the May contract, which expires on Tuesday. That low liquidity set the stage for the unusual negative price scenario.
Although the May contract turned negative, the June contract was still trading above $ 20 a barrel. Brent crude, the global benchmark, was trading above $ 25.
Crude finished at $ 18.27 a barrel on Friday, meaning it collapsed by more than 200% in one day.