On Thursday, WTI crude oil is trading bearish as worries about weakness in demand mount over the continued increase in fresh coronavirus infections and fears of more lockdowns being imposed as a result. At the time of writing, WTI crude oil is trading at around $41.47 per barrel.

In the previous session, optimism about possible vaccines and hopes for OPEC+ to extend their deeper supply cuts helped WTI crude oil gain almost 1%. However, the main focus remains on the recent spike in cases across the US and several other parts of the world and how it can weaken the demand for oil once again.

US oil prices have also turned bearish due to profit booking by investors ahead of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday in the US. Traders are looking to profit from the recent rally and improvement in market sentiment, driving a sell-off that has also had a small impact on the weakening of oil.

WTI oil, however, received some support from the EIA report which released on Wednesday and revealed a smaller build in US crude inventories. According to the EIA, crude stockpiles in the US increased by 768k barrels over the past week, lesser than economists’ forecast for a build of 1.7 million barrels instead.