US Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman ahead of an Opec meeting next month urged oil-producing states on Monday to pump more crude to ease pressure on prices. "There needs to be an increased supply in order to keep the markets of the world supplied with oil," Bodman told reporters on the sidelines of a conference on alternative energy in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi.
The United States is facing recession fears at home after prices briefly surged to a record 100 dollars a barrel at the start of the year. The state of the economy has been a key issue in the campaign for the November presidential election.
The 13-member Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries is due to meet in Vienna on February 1 under pressure to calm prices after shrugging off calls to increase output at its last meeting in December. On Monday, however, world oil prices slid on worsening worries about a potential drop in energy demand owing to the weakness of the US economy, analysts said.
New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in February, shed 1.72 dollars to 88.85 dollars per barrel in electronic deals. Brent North Sea crude for March delivery slumped by 1.51 dollars to 87.72 dollars.
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