TheCable

Crude oil prices continued at a six and a half year low on Tuesday, as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) basket price fell to $38.18 per barrel, one of its lowest since 2009.

The basket price, which is calculated as an average of 12 crude oil variants sold by OPEC members fell from $38.37 per barrel on Friday to $38.18 on Monday, OPEC said on Tuesday.

Oil prices initially hit a 6-year-low on November 18, when it sold for $38.04, but rose to $38.52 the following day, before it crashed to another low on Monday.

The last time the crude oil sold as low as that was in February 2009 when the prices crashed to $38.10 per barrel.

According to OPEC, the crude oil variants that make the current basket are Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

The average crude oil price for the year 2015 till date is $52.78, down from $96.29 in 2014 and $105.87 in 2013.

The last time the average yearly price of crude oil was less than $50 per barrel, was 2005, when the yearly average was $50.59.

OPEC nations are expected to meet with other oil producing nations with the exclusion of the United States in the first week of December to combat falling oil prices.