Another day, another drop in oil prices

NEW YORK, Dec. 14 (UPI) -- Crude oil prices suffered another loss Monday, with Brent taking the biggest hit on the back of pessimistic spending forecasts from big energy companies.

Crude oil prices are in the midst of one of the longest losing streaks since the middle of last year, when weakening first emerged. Crude oil prices are off about 40 percent from this time last year and nearly 65 percent below peak 2014 levels.

West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark price for crude oil, was moving lower at the start of the trading day in New York, off about 1 percent to $35.23 per barrel. Brent crude oil was down 1.1 percent to $37.49.

Oil prices have ended lower in each session since the Dec. 4th meeting for members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. OPEC's late 2014 decision to keep output steady despite emerging signs of weakness added further downward pressure to crude oil prices. Ministers left their latest meeting in Vienna without much in the way of production guidance.

The price for Brent crude oil is down nearly 13 percent from Dec. 4.

Monday's move lower followed a string of reports of budget cuts from U.S. energy companies Chevron and ConocoPhillips. This week, Royal Dutch Shell said its planned merger with BG Group, the largest integration since Exxon and Mobil tied the knot in 1999, would streamline operations, but result in a net 2 percent reduction in labor figures.

Canadian energy company Encana reported a 25 percent spending cut for 2016 and seismic energy company Dolphin said it was moving toward bankruptcy because of the weakened market.