Oil prices fall in Asian trade after IEA cuts demand outlook

Oil prices fell in Asian trade today amid expectations global energy usage will weaken this year, analysts said.

New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for May delivery, shed 37 cents to $49.68 a barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for delivery in May fell 11 cents to $52.03 a barrel.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) on Friday cut its oil demand outlook for 2009 by one million barrels per day (bpd) to 83.4 million barrels, citing the weak global economy as a factor.

"Oil prices have moved lower ... As participants react to IEA's forecast, released on Friday, which lowered demand estimates, again, by another 1MM bpd (one million barrels per day)," said Mike Fitzpatrick at MF Global.

Meanwhile, OPEC may cut output again if demand continues to stay weak, Iran's representative to the oil cartel was quoted as saying yesterday.

"If demand continues to fall until the next meeting of OPEC, a further output cut is possible," Mohammad Ali Khatibi was quoted as saying by Iranian daily Hamshahri.

The next meeting of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is on May 28.

OPEC has reduced its oil production target by an overall 4.2 million barrels per day since September to 24.84 million bpd, the lowest level since just after the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.