Crude oil prices fell by more than one dollar on profit-taking Tuesday as the tensions of Iran and Nigerian kept on.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March, settled at 67.06 dollars, down 1.04 dollars. Heating oil futures fell 2.38 cents to 1.8171 dollars a gallon, while gasoline slipped 4.88 cents to 1.7444 dollars a gallon.

In London, the price of Brent North Sea crude for March delivery dropped 82 cents to 65.34 dollars per barrel.

Traders say prices could keep falling Wednesday if inventories do as expected and rise. Analysts in a Bloomberg survey expect crude inventories in the Energy Department's storage report to rise by 1.3 million barrels, its third consecutive weekly rise, because imports remain high and refiners are shut down for seasonal maintenance.

World oil price closed with a four-month high last Friday on concerns of rising demand and Iran's nuclear tensions.

Oil prices have climbed 11.5 percent since Iran said it would restart nuclear research on Jan. 3. Iran warned Monday that if it was referred to the UN Security Council, which has the power to impose sanctions, it would immediately forge ahead with developing a full-scale uranium enrichment program.

Disruptions in Nigerian oil supplies went further. Gunmen attacked the offices of Italian oil company Agip Tuesday, killing nine people and stealing an unidentified amount of money.

Source: Xinhua