U.S. crude oil falls for third day, dips below $81 ahead of Fed decision, Gaza cease-fire talks

U.S. crude oil fell below $81 a barrel Wednesday in the third straight day of losses as hopes for cease-fire in Gaza and growing concerns about the future course of interest rates in the U.S. weighed on prices.

U.S. crude oil is now off 8% from its intraday high for the year of $87.67, when traders bid up prices on fears that Iran and Israel were on the brink of war. 

Here are today’s energy prices:

• West Texas Intermediate June contract: $80.46 a barrel, down $1.43, or 1.75%. Year to date, U.S. crude oil is up 12.6%.
• Brent July contract: $84.99 a barrel, down $1.34, or 1.55%. Year to date, the global benchmark is up 10.5%.
• RBOB Gasoline June: $2.66 a barrel, down 1.26%. Year to date, gasoline is up 26.7%.
• Natural Gas June contract: $1.94 per thousand cubic feet, down 2.4%. Year to date, natural gas is down 22.6%.

Traders will be closely monitoring the Federal Reserve’s meeting Wednesday for any indication of the central bank’s future course on interest rates.

A raft of data recently has demonstrated that inflation is proving stubborn, consumer confidence is falling, and the U.S. economy is growing more slowly than expected.

In the Middle East, the U.S. and its partners continue to push for a cease-fire in Gaza. An Israeli delegation is in Cairo, Egypt, where negotiations are taking place, an Israeli official told NBC News.

A Hamas delegation was in Cairo Monday to discuss a proposal to release 33 hostages in exchange for a cease-fire and the release of Palestinian prisoners.

A Hamas official told NBC News that main obstacle to an agreement is settling on an end to the war in Gaza. The official said Hamas does not have a specific date for when it will respond to the current cease-fire proposal.