Oil price jumps 25%... but markets suffer worst August for three years

Oil surged over three trading sessions following fall in US production

Oil prices soared 27.5% over the three sessions to Tuesday, as a fall in US oil production and a new OPEC report prompted a surge in trading.

The jump came after US crude oil futures slipped below $40 for the first time since 2009 on 24 August on China concerns, which caused volatility in markets around the world. By the end of Monday, oil prices had risen to $49.20 a barrel including a $3.98, or 8.8%, rise on that day alone.  The increase was the largest three-day increase in dollar terms since 2011 and the largest three-day percentage increase since Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, according to the Wall Street Journal. Earlier on Monday, the US Energy Information Administration said that oil production in the country this ...