Crude-oil prices fell Tuesday as OPEC make available 2 million extra barrels of oil a day and traders took profits gained from a new hurricane threat.

Light, sweet crude for October delivery, New York's main contract, declined 1.16 dollars to close at 66.23 dollars a barrel, after a jump of 4.39 dollars in Monday,

Brent crude on London's International Petroleum Exchange fell 1. 41 dollars to settle at 64.20 dollars a barrel.

The US National Hurricane Center upgraded Rita to a Category 2 hurricane Tuesday afternoon. The storm, sweeping across the Florida Keys, could reach Category 4 strength as it crosses the Gulf of Mexico.

Chevron Corp., Shell Oil, BP PLC, Apache Corp., Anadarko Petroleum Corp., Marathon Oil Corp. and drilling contractor Transocean Inc. had evacuated workers from various oil facilities in the Gulf as of late Tuesday.

The U.S. Minerals Management Service said more than 58 percent of daily oil output in the Gulf was blocked Tuesday due to disruption from Katrina and evacuations ahead of Rita, up slightly from 56 percent Monday.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed Tuesday in Vienna, to make available 2 million extra barrels of oil a day to reassure markets edgy over supplies for the winter and storms threatening refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Source: Xinhua