SINGAPORE: Brent crude slipped below $110 per barrel on Wednesday, weighed down by worries that a fragile global economy would cut oil demand, although supply disruption risks amid rising tensions between Iran and Western nations kept losses in check.
Big anti-austerity protests in Spain reignited fears about the three-year old debt crisis in the euro zone, while more profit warnings by US companies, including heavy equipment maker Caterpillar Inc, showed how the global slowdown is slashing corporate earnings.
Economic worries "might be putting the brakes on gains in crude," said Ben Le Brun, markets analyst with OptionsXpress in Sydney.
"The premium on the Iran situation doesn't seem to be built into prices, so the focus till the end of the year will be on developments in Iran with an eagle eye on economic data."
Front-month Brent futures fell to as low as $109.79 a barrel, before trimming losses to $110.20 by 0312 GMT, down 25 cents and their second drop in three days.
US crude fell 13 cents to $91.24 per barrel, off a session low of $90.73, not far off Tuesday's trough of $90.57, its weakest in almost two months.
Both contracts are headed for their first monthly decline in three, surrendering gains from earlier this month when both reached four-month highs as a commodity-wide rally fed by efforts of central banks from United States and Europe sputtered, putting investor focus back on a shaky global economy.
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