Oil Falls to Near $88 a Barrel

Crude oil prices fell for a third trading day in pre-market trading Monday, with futures falling almost $1 to $88.07 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, Bloomberg reported.

Oil futures fell nearly $3 on Friday, to close at $88.96 a barrel on the Nymex, following an OPEC announcement that it would not boost production levels, Bloomberg reported.

OPEC ministers on Friday decided against raising output levels and may cut production as early as next month should the slowing U.S. economy continue to diminish demand for crude, the Associated Press reported.

OPEC said it is focused on near-term expectations such as the likelihood of less demand as the Western hemisphere’s heating season ends and before its summer driving season begins, AP said.