Oil prices have dropped in Asian trade due to concerns that China's low growth targets could decrease demand.
The rising concern about Russia’s compliance with the output-cut deal also fuelled fall in oil price.
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Brent crude futures lost 47 cents to $55.43 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures plummeted by 47 cents to trade at $52.86 a barrel, reported Reuters.
But the rising violence in the Middle Eastern countries prevented oil prices from further fall.
Oanda brokerage senior market strategist Jeffrey Halley was quoted by the news agency as saying: “The main drag affecting markets today is the lowering of growth targets by China and tighter regulatory controls, which implies less demand for oil and commodities in general.”
Earlier, Chinese premier Li Keqiang said at the annual meeting in the parliament that China aims 6.5% growth this year. Last year, the country witnessed 6.7% growth in the economy.
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By GlobalDataChina also plans to reduce steel and coal production to tackle growing pollution levels.
On the other hand, Russian energy ministry has released February oil production reports. Last month, Russia produced 11.11 million barrels a day bearing no change from its January figure, reported the news agency.
