oil futures declined on wednesday with us benchmark prices settling down by more than 1 the federal reserve said wednesday that it would raise its benchmark federalfunds rate by 075 percentage point and said rates are going to move sharply higher before the end of the year higher rates are restrictive in nature and likely to become a headwind on consumer spending including that on refined products like gasoline and diesel said tyler richey coeditor at sevens report research however todays fed announcement is not a bearish game changer for the oil market and we are continuing to look for oil to find a bottom here in the upper 70s to low 80s range as the still fluid fundamental backdrop is reassessed in real time november wti crude clx22 fell 1 or 12 to settle at 8294 barrel on the new york mercantile exchange