Oil prices dropped this evening on growing concerns about Europe's economy.
Benchmark US crude fell $2.95, or 3.3%, to $86.10 a barrel in New York. Brent crude lost $2.65, or 2.3%, at $111.90 a barrel in London trade.
Prices fell as the European Central Bank said a top official was leaving unexpectedly. Juergen Stark, the bank's top economist, resigned for personal reasons, but analysts took his departure as a sign of deepening divisions over how to solve Europe's debt crisis.
Europe is a major consumer of diesel fuel, and its economic woes have sent tremors through world markets.
The ECB news pushed the dollar higher, as the euro fell to its lowest level since February. Oil, which is priced in US currency, tends to fall when the dollar rises and makes oil more expensive for investors holding foreign money.
Analysts also noted that Libya appears ready to start exporting oil again. After seven months of unrest that shut down its petroleum industry, Libya plans to load about 600,000 barrels of crude onto a tanker next week.
While that is a tiny amount compared with the 1.5 million barrels a day that Libya used to export, it is a promising sign that Libyan oil could soon be back on world markets.
