Crude oil futures ended lower on Tuesday after the Energy Department and the White House said that the president had authorized the sale of a further 20 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve by October, an addition to the already scheduled release of 180 million barrels. Further, the dollar’s rebound from recent losses contributed as well to the drop in oil prices. The dollar climbed higher with traders looking ahead to the Federal Reserve’s policy announcement, due on Wednesday.
Benchmark crude oil futures for September delivery fell $1.72 or about 1.8 percent to settle at $94.98 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for September delivery lost $0.79 or 0.8 percent to settle at $99.40 (Provisional) a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.