Crude Falls Below $50 for First Time Since April on Glut Concern

Crude slumped below $50 a barrel in New York for the first time in more than three months on speculation that Iranian shipments will climb, extending a global glut.

West Texas Intermediate decreased 1.5 percent. Iran will focus on regaining oil sales it lost due to sanctions regardless of the impact on prices, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said in Tehran Monday. U.S. crude stockpiles remain almost 100 million barrels above the five-year average for this time of the year, Energy Information Administration data show.