Oil Futures Extend Their Sell-off, As Nymex Crude Loses Grip On $65

U.S. crude-oil futures spiraled further down in electronic trade late Sunday, with the most-active January 2015 contract breaking below the $65-a-barrel handle to hit $64.90 as East Asian markets opened. The drop represented a 2% fall from the New York Mercantile Exchange settlement Friday, when the contract had plunged 10% after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries failed to agree to an output cut. A Dow Jones Newswires technical analysis put the next main support at $64.24, the "reaction low" of May 20, 2010. A breach below that level would set up possible downside at the psychological boundary of $60.00, the news agency said. Meanwhile, Nymex crude's London-traded rival benchmark, Brent crude , lost 1.9% to $68.85 a barrel in electronic trade, extending its 3.4% retreat Friday.