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1st LD Writethru: Oil prices fall on supply glut

Xinhua, February 24, 2015 Adjust font size:

Oil prices extended losses on Monday as a slowdown in the decline in the number of rig drilling renewed worries about global supply glut.

The number of U.S. rigs drilling for oil dropped by 37 to 1019 the week before, said U.S. field services company Baker Hughes on Friday. The cut, the smallest in seven weeks, triggered market concern that the retreat in rig count was not fast enough to balance the market, already overloaded with a record high of inventories.

Meanwhile, global crude supplies increased as oil fields in eastern Libya resumed working after a pipeline was mended, according to Libya's National Oil Corp.

Oil prices came under further pressure as a stronger dollar discouraged investors from buying dollar-priced commodities including oil. The greenback rose against most of its peers on Monday as investors were awaiting the testimony on monetary policy from the Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen over the next two days.

Light, sweet crude for April delivery moved down 1.36 U.S. dollars to settle at 49.45 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for April delivery dropped 1.32 dollars to close at 58.90 dollars a barrel. Endite