World oil prices dipped to a fresh two-year low today as dealers continued to bet against any quick action from OPEC to halt a 25-per cent month-long price slide.
Promises to help stabilise the market by OPEC officials were proving empty and further losses appeared likely, said dealers. Brent crude oil was down 44 cents at $20.55 at 2.15 p.m., their lowest level for two years.
OPEC's three biggest exporters, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Venezuela, called today on producers outside of the cartel to help rein in output and lift prices out of the current slump.
But so far there appears little impetus from non OPEC states to join its efforts, and traders have become impatient with the group's inaction.
The OPEC trio said another cartel output cut was a possibility due to the sharp downturn in oil demand after last month's attacks in the United States.
But they insisted OPEC, which has already sliced 3.5 million barrels per day, or around 13 percent, from world supplies this year, would act in response to market conditions.
Prices have been on a downward track since the September 11th attacks on America as fears of a global recession have heightened. Poor economic conditions lead to a downturn in petroleum consumption.
Oil's losses have deepened this week on fresh evidence of wilting demand in the United States, the biggest oil consumer, and amid sharp revisions to projections for demand this year.
The Energy Information Administration reported yesterday that US demand for oil products - including gasoline and diesel - averaged just over 19 million barrels per day in the last four-week period, down 3.7 per cent from a year ago.