Brent crude oil price declines $40 in 5 months

The price of Brent crude oil has declined almost $40 per barrel in the last five months on weak global demand.
The price of brent crude dropped to $76,74 per barrel in November -- the lowest point in four years -- from $115,67 per barrel in June.
The resumption of oil production in Libya has also increased supplies and pushed the price lower.
Europe and Asia are both suffering from slow economic growth, and that means less demand for oil. Further, the rising value of the U.S. dollar has put a damper on oil consumption, as oil is priced in dollars. Countries that must exchange low-valued currencies for dollars are finding oil purchases more expensive.
The U.S. has also reduced its imports of foreign oil as domestic oil production of unconventional shale oil has ramped up to make the country a net exporter of petroleum products.
OPEC and the U.S.
A dispute about the price of oil divides the the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, the Middle Eastern oil cartel that unites many major producers.
Saudi Arabia, world's biggest oil producer, reduced its selling price to preserve market share.
But OPEC has signaled that it will not cut production at the cartel's meeting on Nov. 27.
Consequently, the International Energy Agency is revising downward projections for global demand.
Energy-hungry states, like Turkey benefit from the price decline, which helps them to resist inflation and to narrow their current account deficits.
Future predictions
Oil prices will continue to fall if demand stays weak, according to oil analysts, who warn of a continuing decline below the $80 per barrel mark. Now $74.5 per barrel and $70.4 per barrel are support levels, while $80 per barrel has become the new resistance level.
In financial markets, the resistance level is the price level at which demand weakens, so that the price does not rise above that level. When a price falls to a support level, demand rises and maintains the price at that level.