Oil prices continued to fall on Wednesday as OPEC predicted a smaller rise in oil demand this year.

Crude for September delivery closed down 1.16 dollars to 71.89 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In London, Brent North Sea crude for September delivery fell 72 cents to 73.08 dollars a barrel.

On Wednesday, OPEC cut its 2006 oil demand growth forecast by 80,000 a day on an unexpected decline in OECD country demand. OPEC estimated world oil demand will rise more slightly this year, partly because of record high prices. The world will consume 84.5 million barrels a day this year, OPEC said.

The Energy Department figures indicated that crude supplies fell 1.6 million barrels to 331 million barrels for the week ended Aug. 11. But supplies still were up 10 percent from the five-year average.

Source: Xinhua