Crude oil shed 9 percent to the level of US$35 a barrel Wednesday as a buildup in U.S. gasoline stockpiles and more worrying economic data added to the demand concern.

Light, sweet crude for February delivery fell US$3.63 to settle at US$35.35 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Price dropped to as low as US$35.13 a barrel during the trading.

Oil prices went lower in morning trading after the U.S. Energy Department reported that crude supply dropped by 3.1 million barrels last week, but gasoline stockpiles jumped by 3.3 million barrels, far more than the market had predicted.

But it is the jobless data that sent the oil price nose diving. The U.S. Labor Department said the initial claims for unemployment benefits increased to a 26-year high of 586,000 last week, much more than the expected 560,000. To make it worse, the U.S. Commerce Department report showed that consumers spending declined for the fifth consecutive month in November.

With economic slowdown worsening, a record production cut of OPEC last week seems unable to catch up the deteriorating demand. OPEC President Chakib Khelil told press on Tuesday that the organization may call an emergency meeting before March if the oil price continue sliding.

In London, Brent crude fell US$3.75 to settle at US$36.61 a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange.

(Xinhua News Agency December 25, 2008)