“No matter what your risk asset is, at this point people are distancing themselves from different instruments”said Robert Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho in New York.
“Nobody wants to go home with a big position in anything today…there’s nowhere to hide,” he added.
Both benchmarks reached their lowest level since December 2021 and have been falling for three consecutive days.
Brent LCOc1 crude was down $4.65, or 6%, at $72.35 a barrel by 1735 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) CLc1 was down $4.51, or 6.3%, at $66.84.
The two contracts broke technical supports of 70 and 68 dollarswhich deepened the fall.
Both contracts had fallen more than 4% on Tuesday, pressured by fears that the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) last week and other bank failures in the United States could trigger a financial crisis that hit demand for fuel.
The dollar also strengthened against a basket of currencies, making crude oil more expensive for those using other currencies.
Crude stocks in the United States rose 1.6 million barrels last week, according to government data, more than the 1.2 million barrels expected by Reuters analysts.