Oil Prices Hit Three-Year Low on Economic News

New York, NY, Dec. 2, 2008--Oil prices fell to a 3-year low below $48 a barrel Tuesday as more bleak U.S. economic news and plunging stock markets darkened investor expectations for energy demand.

By midday in Europe, light, sweet crude for January delivery was down 71 cents to $48.57 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier in the session, prices briefly fell to $47.36, the lowest since 2005.

In London, January Brent crude slid 54 cents to $47.43 on the ICE Futures exchange.