Brent for January settlement declined $2.88 to $66.19 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange, the lowest since Sept. 29, 2009. The volume of all futures was 4.9 percent below the 100-day average. WTI for January delivery dropped $2.79 to end at $63.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the lowest settlement since July 16, 2009. Volume was 13 percent above the 100-day average.

Oil was selling at $105 a barrel as recently as July, but the price has been falling ever since. Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia blocked calls from poorer members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to reduce production at the group’s meeting on November 27, fueling a further slide in oil prices which have lost more than 40 per cent since June.