US crude oil price falls for fifth consecutive week

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Oil prices fell for a fifth week in the United States after concerns that rising production from the US to Libya will offset cuts from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies.

Oil prices in New York and London tumbled into a bear market on concerns that expanding global supply will counter reductions from OPEC and partners including Russia.

Shale drillers added oil rigs for a record 23rd straight week as a growing backlog of unfinished wells – and the crude that will eventually flow from those projects – threatens to add to the global glut.

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West Texas Intermediate for August delivery settled at 43.01 US dollars a barrel, up 27 cents, on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices have fallen 21 percent from their peak in February. A bear market is defined as at least a 20-percent drop.

US oil production has increased by 20,000 barrels a day to 9.35 million, the Energy Information Administration reported last Wednesday. While crude stockpiles slid by 2.45 million barrels to 509.1 million, inventories remain about 100 million barrels above the five-year average.

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China cut the retail prices of gasoline and diesel for the sixth time this year from Saturday, following a drop in global oil prices.

The gas price decreased by 250 yuan (about 36.76 US dollars) per ton, while the diesel price was lowered by 240 yuan per ton (35.09 US dollars), according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

(Source: Xinhua)