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Crude oil surged in afternoon trade, with prices down nearly 5 percent to their lowest level in more than a year as investor concern over the health of Swiss bank Credit Suisse spooked international markets, reported Reuters.

The first signs of a return to calm and stability in the oil markets faded after the largest investor in Credit Suisse announced that it could not continue to provide financial support to the credit institution.

This led to a decline in the value of the shares of the Swiss bank and other European companies, notes Reuters. 

"Fears of the spread of the financial collapse are clearly gaining strength," Tamas Varga, a broker at oil products and derivatives trading company PVM (PVM), told Reuters.

"As a result, the dollar appreciates and stocks become cheaper, which is a bad omen for oil prices," adds Varga. 

Oil went up

Brent futures from the North Sea fell by 4.88 percent to 73.67 dollars per barrel at 17:00 Bulgarian time.

U.S. light crude was down 5.15 percent at $67.66 a barrel.

These are the lowest price levels of the two main types of oil since December 2021, BTA notes.

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