Crude slips in Asia ahead of European debt summit

SINGAPORE – Crude markets edged lower in Asia on Wednesday as skittish traders stayed out of the market ahead of a key European debt summit, analysts said.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, fell 31 cents to $92.86 per barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for December delivery shed 14 cents to $110.78.

All eyes were on a key European summit to be convened later Wednesday, with the region’s leaders promising to reveal more concrete details in their battle plan to ease the eurozone’s debt woes, analysts said.

“We look to Europe for leads in terms of (crude) demand,” said Jonathan Barratt, managing director of Commodity Broking Services in Sydney.

European leaders were due to meet later Wednesday to continue discussions on how to resolve a regional debt crisis that has plagued global commodities and equities markets for months and risks dragging down the world economy.

The summit — the second convened in four days — is being followed closely by traders as leaders had promised on Sunday that they would reveal concrete details of debt rescue plans they had hammered out at the weekend sitting.