Oil prices slumped to $63 today as traders digested a surprise jump in crude stockpiles in the US.
US crude oil nosedived $3.93 per barrel to $63.30 after earlier touching a low of $63.04.
London's Brent North Sea crude sank $3.24 to $66.64 a barrel, having earlier hit $66.40.
The US Department of Energy said today that American crude stocks surged 5.1 million barrels in the week ending July 24, snapping seven successive weekly falls.
That confounded market expectations for a 1.2-million-barrel drop, and indicated that crude demand was weak in the recession-hit country.
The US DoE added petrol reserves fell 2.3 million barrels, which was far greater than expectations for a 100,000-barrel decline.
Prices were also dragged lower by official data showing that new orders for US manufactured durable goods fell 2.5% in June after two months of increases, amid weakness in defence and aircraft purchases.
The oil market was also dampened by the falling Chinese stock market, analysts said. Chinese shares slumped 5% as investors collected profits across the market after recent gains, with property developers leading the fall.
