Oil prices slip

NEW YORK, March 13, 2010: Oil prices fell Friday after news of a surprise decline in US consumer confidence in the world's biggest oil-consuming nation stirred concern about energy demand.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, dropped 87 cents to close at 81.24 dollars a barrel.

London's Brent North Sea crude for April shed 89 cents to settle at 79.39 dollars a barrel.

Earlier in the session the New York benchmark futures contract had climbed above 83 dollars.

"The market might be responding to the consumer confidence number that was worse than expected," said Jason Schenker of Prestige Economics.

The University of Michigan's consumer confidence index dropped for the second consecutive month in March, to 72.5 from 73.6 in February, instead of rising to 74.0 as analysts expected.

-AFP