It fell more than a dollar to $49.92 a barrel in early trading on Wednesday before edging back above the $50 mark.
Slowing global growth and increased supply of oil and gas have pushed prices sharply lower in recent weeks.
The price of oil traded in the United States, known as West Texas Intermediate crude, has already fallen below $50.
Many observers expect the price of oil to fall further as North American shale producers continue to supply increasing quantities of oil and gas, and the oil-producing group Opec resists calls for cuts in production to support prices.
"With no sign that Opec will do anything about over-production, it seems likely that we could well see further declines towards $40 in the coming weeks," said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.
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| Saudi Arabia has again insisted that it will not cut production to prop up oil prices in the short term |
Analysis by Mark Lobel, business reporter, Dubai:
Oil industry insiders tell me they think it will be a year or two until prices return to around $80 - $90 per barrel.
A senior oil executive thinks Brent crude will drop to $45 per barrel, while an engineer suggested it could drop further.
Despite this, the Saudi King used a speech, delivered by the Crown Prince on Tuesday, to again insist the oil giant will not cut production, despite themselves having to decrease discounts to Asian customers as the low prices bite.
There are other signs Saudi Arabia may be feeling the pinch a little too hard, despite its large foreign reserves and cheap production costs.
The Kingdom's main oil company has suspended a major clean fuels plant and several new rigs.
Gulf economies are now budgeting for an assumed oil price of around $60 a barrel this year but insist that they will continue spending regardless, to build and diversify their economies, incurring a deficit if needs be.
Iraq however is suffering badly. With major security challenges there, they are already budgeting for a huge deficit.
SSOURCE: bbc
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