New York's main contract, light sweet crude for May delivery, dropped $1.96 from the closing price on Thursday to $52.38.
In London, Brent North Sea crude for May shed $1.48 to $51.98.
The price drop came as US stocks fell Friday after rallying most of the week on expectations that the recession gripping the world's biggest energy consuming nation may be easing.
Crude prices likely ran out of steam on worries the worst may not be over for the US economy, analysts said.
Gold for April delivery fell $16.80 to settle at $923.20 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
May silver lost 35.7 cents to $13.263 an ounce and May copper futures fell 1.9 cents to $1.836 a pound.
Author: Ksenia Kochneva
