World oil prices declined in Tuesday's trading as investors bet that supplies of oil will grow in the key U.S. market.
The price of crude oil for future delivery dropped as low as $47.75 in New York. That is the lowest price in six weeks, and a sharp decline from the record $55.67 set late last month.
Hurricane damage hurt some key U.S. oil producers, and tight supplies had helped push up prices.
But analysts say a combination of repairs and increased imports are filling the gap.
We will get a clearer picture of oil supplies on Wednesday at 10:30 AM when the U.S. Energy Department releases its weekly oil inventory figures. Some of this information provided by AFP, AP, Bloomberg and Reuters.