Oil prices settled more than $2 per barrel lower on Thursday, wiping out the last session's rally, as investors reassessed a planned pause in sweeping U.S. tariffs and focus shifted to a deepening trade war between Washington and Beijing.

Crude oil now costs 15 percent less than it did before the president revealed his plans to impose stiff new tariffs on imports from most countries.

Oil prices rose to a gain after sinking to a four-year low Wednesday morning in anticipation of slowing economic growth and reduced energy demand, both casualties of a trade war that began after President Donald Trump ordered widespread tariffs against the imports of U.