OPEC calls emergency meeting as oil falls below $70

Oil prices dropped below $70 a barrel for the first time in 14 months Thursday, prompting the OPEC cartel to call for an emergency meeting next Friday to establish some stability in prices that have swung wildly along with the stock market this year.

Prices have fallen nearly $40 a barrel in just three weeks amid growing signs that demand for energy will slow along with weakening economies around the world. As recently as July, oil hit a record above $147 a barrel.

The decline could be a stimulus to the economy as consumers pay less to fill up their tanks. If oil prices stay at present levels, consumers would have $250 billion more, over a year, to save or spend elsewhere, according to Lawrence Goldstein, an energy economist.

Some analysts expect prices to keep declining, perhaps to as low as $50 a barrel. Oil settled down $4.69 a barrel at $69.85 on Thursday.

Americans probably will see lower energy bills this winter, as gasoline and heating-oil futures also dropped sharply Thursday. Gasoline prices now average $3.08 a gallon, down from a summer peak of $4.11 a gallon, according to AAA. The average price for regular in the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett area was $3.35 on Thursday.

The decline in oil prices came after a government report showed a larger-than-anticipated rise in domestic crude-oil stockpiles as Americans use less oil, in part because they are driving less.

In the past month, domestic oil demand has fallen to its lowest level since June 1999, at 18.6 million barrels a day, according to the Department of Energy.

While consumers may have reason to cheer after such a sharp price run-up, the wild roller coaster of volatility is a nightmare for oil producers and petroleum executives who say they need more stability to better plan long-term projects to develop new sources of oil.

If they cannot be confident they will get a stable return on their investment, they may hold back. That, in turn, could set the stage for possible shortages and higher prices when global demand picks up again.