LONDON: Brent crude slid towards $99 per barrel on Wednesday, weighed by the prospect of sluggish fuel demand in top consumers the United States and China and rising stockpiles of US crude.
More bleak economic news came courtesy of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which trimmed projections for this year and next - implying limited upside for oil demand growth.
The North Sea benchmark has lost nearly 6 percent over the past five sessions in a wider commodities rout triggered by data showing growth in China, the world's second largest oil burner, had slowed unexpectedly in the first three months of 2013.
Gold later bounced back, although other metals such as copper continued to decline.
"At the moment the oil complex is in a technical downtrend with the fundamentals being driven by a deteriorating demand projection in a robust supply environment," said Dominick Chirichella of Energy Management Institute.
The head of the International Energy Agency, Maria van der Hoeven, said the oil price decline was proof that the market was adequately supplied.
Brent crude shed 75 cents to $99.16 a barrel by 0939 GMT, after dropping to $98 on Tuesday, the weakest since July 2012. US crude slipped 72 cents to $88.00 a barrel.
"For now there is no immediate reason - other than short covering - to suggest that oil prices are ready for strong move to the upside," said Chirichella.
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