NEW YORK • Oil prices crumpled even further Tuesday, and U.S. stocks sank to their worst loss in weeks as worries swept markets worldwide about the economic carnage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The market’s spotlight was again on oil, where prices have plummeted because very few people are flying or driving, and factories have shut amid widespread stay-at-home orders. Global demand is set to drop to levels last seen in the mid-1990s. At the same time, oil producers can’t slow their production fast enough, and all the extra crude means storage tanks are quickly running out of room.

The cost for a barrel of U.S. oil to be delivered in June plunged 43% to $11.57. That’s the part of the market that oil traders are focused on and trading most actively. For oil to be delivered next month, which is when storage tanks could top out, the cost of a barrel stood at $10.01. A day earlier, it fell below zero for the first time, meaning traders paid others to take oil off their hands to get rid of the headache of finding where to store it.

Analysts consider prices for U.S. oil to be delivered in June and later as closer to the “true“ price of crude, along with prices for international oils. They did not drop below zero, in part because the storage issues aren’t as pressing for them.

The crumbling oil market helped drag stocks to their second straight day of losses, and the S&P 500 lost 3.1% for its worst drop since April 1. It followed similar declines across Europe and Asia.

The losses were widespread, with 94% of stocks in the index down. Even shares of some recent winners in the new stuck-at-home economy dropped. Netflix slipped 0.8% before it announced its quarterly results after trading closed, including a 23% rise in global memberships.

Oil tank train cars sit idle Tuesday in East Chicago, Ind. The world is awash in oil, there’s little demand for it and we’re running out of places to put it.

the associated press