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Summary Crude oil prices fell Monday on concerns about the eurozone debt crisis.
Worries about weaker economic growth dragged down oil prices Monday.Oil has now fallen five of the last six trading days. It fell more than 6 percent last week.Benchmark crude fell 96 cents, or 1 percent, to finish at $91.93 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices for other petroleum products dropped, too.In London, Brent crude dropped $1.61 at $109.81 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.Germany delivered the latest dose of gloomy economic news, with its Ifo index of business confidence falling for the fifth month in a row.Germany is an economic powerhouse, but 43 percent of its exports go to its euro partners. And growth is stalling across the other 16 countries in the eurozone.Slower economies mean less demand for oil, pushing prices down.Phil Flynn, a senior market analyst for Price Futures Group, said hes surprised prices havent fallen further. He said one reason could be that commodity funds have not been bailing out of oil.Still, oil prices have been under pressure from worries about Europe. The dollar has been stronger, which makes oil cheaper for holders of other currencies.Youre seeing demand destruction around the globe, he said. Youve got Saudi Arabia saying theyre going to pump oil until the cows come home. All of that drives down oil prices, he said.
