Oil Lost Almost $2

Oil prices slid 3 per cent on Thursday as rising crude stockpiles in the United States eased concerns over strong global demand.

US light crude settled down $1.74 to $54.11 a barrel, more than $4 below Monday?s record $58.28 at NYMEX.
London Brent crude fell $1.23 to $54.04 a barrel at IPE.

US crude prices have surged about 25 per cent this year, driven by concerns that rapidly rising energy demand in Asia?s emerging economies, especially China and India, could outpace supply growth.