Crude prices tumbled 4 percent Wednesday as the U.S. government reported that crude stockpiles fell less than expected last week.
Crude prices have declined 7 dollars since Friday amid expectations that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) may increase output and U.S. demand growth would decrease due to economic problems.
Light, sweet crude for January delivery plunged 3.80 dollars to 90.62 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange following Tuesday's drop of 3.28 dollars.
In London, January Brent crude fell 2.71 dollars to 89.81 dollars a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
U.S. crude inventories fell 400,000 barrels last week, less than half of what analysts had expected, as imports offset higher demand from the nation's refineries, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Crude stockpiles in Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for U.S. crude futures, rose 600,000 barrels over the same period, according to the EIA.
Meanwhile, several OPEC ministers have said recently that their nations are ready to boost oil output to bring down high oil prices. Analysts believe the cartel will boost production by 500,000 to 1 million barrels a day on the OPEC ministers meeting due on Dec. 5.
Source: Xinhua
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