The price of brent crude oil dropped to $102 a barrel due to ample supplies and weak economic growth.
Reuters reports that October Brent crude declined 25 cents at $102.47 a barrel, while last week it hit a 14-month low of $101.07.
In fact, the crude oil price is yet to come out of the $102-$103 range this week.
The worldwide oil supply is estimated to cross demand this year and oil benchmarks on both sides of the Atlantic are expected to decline for a second month in a row.
US crude fell following the news of a fire at BP‘s largest refinery in the US. The October contract dropped 40 cents to touch $93.48 a barrel.
Investors have been concerned about political instability in Iraq and Libya even though oil shipments from these two nations have increased in the last few months.
The reduction in oil output from the Middle East and North Africa have been offset by increased oil production over the last three years from the US, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).
The oil output in the US increased by over 4 million barrels per day (bpd) between January 2011 and July this year; however, during the same period, unplanned supply outages reduced about 2.8 million bpd of oil production, the EIA notes.
According to analysts, the dispute over the Ukraine crisis could further cut down consumption of fuel.
The chances of a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine reduced following Ukraine’s allegations on Russia for starting a fresh military incursion.
