Oil down in Asia as eurozone fears linger

SINGAPORE: Oil was lower in Asian trade Monday amid fresh concerns over Europe's sovereign debt woes, analysts said.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude for July delivery, lost 26 cents to $100.33 a barrel and Brent North Sea crude for July delivery was down 42 cents at $114.61 in the afternoon.

"If the EU has trouble, it will have a drag on economic growth globally," Jason Feer, a Singapore-based analyst at Argus Media, told AFP.

There are worries the stronger eurozone economies could be affected eventually by its weaker members, thereby affecting crude demand.

Greece was the first of three members of the 17-nation eurozone to need a multi-billion-euro bailout. Ireland and Portugal have since followed suit and markets fear that Spain might eventually need help too.

Officials from the EU, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank are in Greece reviewing progress on its May 2010 bailout programme, and must report soon on whether to grant the next tranche of funds.

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou warned the country will "most likely" go bankrupt without the next aid installment while Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou said "no wages, pensions or state obligations will be paid" without the money.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011