Metals sink, oil prices down to lowest this year, amid covid spread, protests in China

Commodities sank as China's Covid outbreak worsened and a series of stunning street protests in cities across the nation threaten to derail economic activity and sap demand for energy, food and raw materials.

Oil tumbled to the lowest level since December as unrest in China hurt investors' appetite for risk and clouded the outlook for energy demand, adding to stresses in an already-fragile global crude market.

West Texas Intermediate sank toward $74 a barrel following three weeks of losses.

Protests over harsh anti-virus curbs spread across the world's largest crude importer over the weekend, spurring a selloff in commodities.

Base metals in London and Shanghai dropped, with Chinese copper futures declining as much 1.7%. Iron ore in Dalian fell as much as 2%.

Crude oil in Shanghai followed international markets lower, plunging as much as 5.4%.

Cooking oil futures in Dalian tumbled as much as 3% on concerns over the threat to demand at restaurants and hotels already reeling from lockdowns.