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Oil Caps Its Worst Month Since May as Trade-War Concerns Linger

Prices slump 2.8% ahead of Labor Day holiday in U.S.
Russia’s limited output cuts in August adds to supply concerns

Valve wheels sit on crude oil pipework in an oil field near Samara, Russia, on Tuesday, May 14, 2019. The nearby village of Nikolayevka in central Russia has emerged as the epicenter of an international oil scandal with authorities saying corrosive chlorides entered Russia’s 40,000-mile network of oil pipelines, causing the first-ever shutdown of the main export artery to Europe. — Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg

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August 29, 2019, 10:30 PM UTCUpdated onAugust 30, 2019, 9:24 PM UTC

Oil extended its biggest monthly decline since May as concern over U.S.-China trade tensions outweighed signs that OPEC’s supply cuts are trimming stockpiles.

Futures fell 2.8% in New York, extending the month’s slide to almost 6%. Concerns about demand for swelling U.S. production have been stoked as China gets set to start taxing U.S. oil from Sunday. American oil explorers, even as they cut drilling to a 19-month low, are producing record volumes of crude.