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By Richard Valdmanis
NEW YORK, March 24 (Reuters) - Oil prices dropped sharply
on Monday, extending a slide from last week's record to 10
percent amid a recovery in the U.S. dollar and lingering
worries over slowing energy demand.
Dealers said Monday's losses were tempered somewhat by
better than expected U.S. homes sales data that lifted Wall
Street stocks and forecasts of unusually cold weather in the
U.S. Northeast and European heating markets.
U.S. crude futures <CLc1> settled down 98 cents at $100.86
after touching a low of $99.95, bringing them further below
last Monday's $111.80 peak. London Brent crude <LCOc1> fell 52
cents to $99.86 a barrel.
Traders and analysts said a recovery in the U.S. dollar
from recent lows against the euro was pressuring the nominal
price of virtually all dollar-denominated commodities,
including crude.
Meanwhile, dealers continued to watch for signs the U.S.
economic slowdown was softening energy demand after government
data last week showed total petroleum consumption was running
about 3.2 percent below last year.
"We suspect that the correction in commodities still has
some ways to go, and we could push somewhat lower from here,"
Edward Meir with MF Global said in a research note.
The weakness in oil was tempered by a recovery in U.S.
stock markets, however, after a report showed U.S. February
existing home sales rose by more than expected.
U.S. stocks also got a boost from news that JPMorgan Chase
& Co had quintupled its offer to buy Bear Stearns Cos, which
was hit by the subprime mortgage loan crisis.
Adding support, demand for heating oil in the U.S. will be
3.5 percent above normal this week, according to the National
Weather Service. Sub-zero temperatures have also hit northwest
Europe.
Support also came from data showing China, the world's
second largest oil consumer, raised crude purchases by 18.1
percent over a year earlier to match a daily record made in
April 2007 at 3.6 million barrels a day.
Uncertainty over world energy demand growth has kept OPEC
from raising production to lower high oil prices, despite calls
from consumer nations for additional output.
U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, who visited Saudi Arabia
last week, said on Monday, however, that the OPEC heavyweight
had kept its promise to increase oil production capacity over
the past three years.
"They said they would add 2 million barrels a day in
production over the next four or five years, through the end of
(2009), and they've kept their word," Cheney said.
President George W. Bush visited Saudi Arabia in January,
calling for OPEC to increase supply to the market, but the
exporters' group decided to hold production steady.
(Additional reporting by Fayen Wong in Sydney and Ikuko Kao in
London; Editing by Christian Wiessner)
