Oil ends below $72 on weaker equities, stronger dollar

Oil prices ended below 72 U.S. dollar a barrel on Thursday as equities declined and the dollar strengthened.

Light, sweet crude for September delivery settled down 3 cents to 71.94 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract dropped to an intra-day low of 70.18 dollars a barrel before rebounding to the settlement level, which was little changed compared with the previous session.

Oil prices were pressured by the equities market, with the main averages near their session low when the oil market closed. Meanwhile, the dollar strengthened against the euro, limiting the demand for crude oil as an alternative investment.

In London, Brent crude for September delivery dropped 60 cents to 74.91 dollars a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.