Oil Drops $6 on Economic Concerns

Oil futures saw their biggest single-day drop in 17 years Tuesday, falling more than $6 to close the trading day at $138.74 a barrel, the Associated Press reported.

The decline came amid concerns that record fuel prices are adding to the U.S. economy’s sluggishness, and in Tuesday’s volatile trading session the price fell at one point more than $10 from the day’s high, AP said.

OPEC, meanwhile, predicted world oil demand will rise by 900,000 barrels a day next year, or 100,000 bbd less than this year, AP said, pinning the slowdown on a slumping global economy and high pump prices in industrialized countries.

On Monday, U.S. diesel fuel’s national average price rose 3.7 cents to a record $4.764, while gasoline dipped 0.1 cent from last week’s record to $4.113, the Department of Energy said in its weekly survey.