The price of Brent crude oil declined below $50 a barrel for the first time since May 2009 on Wednesday, due to an increasing supply glut.
Reuters reported that Brent crude futures declined to $49.66, while US futures fell to $46.83, its lowest since April 2009.
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OPEC has decided not to cut production, despite oil prices plummeting 57% since June 2014.
Global business growth slumped to its weakest rate in more than a year at the end of 2014, according to JPMorgan’s Global All-Industry Output Index, which is produced with Markit.
SEB chief commodity analyst in Oslo Bjarne Schieldrop was quoted by the news agency as saying: "There’s a surplus in production of 1 to 1.5 million barrels per day in 2015 and there’s absolutely no sign OPEC will intervene to cut production at a time of lower demand."
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Schieldrop added that there was also little sign that prices at these levels were likely to have an impact on US shale production.
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By GlobalDataNobuyuki Nakahara, a former oil executive and ex-member of the Bank of Japan’s policy board, told Reuters he expected prices to decline further.
Nakahara was quoted by the agency as saying: "Oil prices are likely to keep falling due to slower Chinese growth and because the years of prices above $100 before the recent plunge were ‘abnormal’ historically.
"I would not be surprised if the price falls to as low as around $20."
