Oil futures fell below $141 a barrel as the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S Bernanke said risks to US growth and inflation have increased, in testimony to the Senate Banking Committee. The US stocks tumbled, and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index reached its lowest since 2005. Earlier, oil touched $146.73 a barrel.
Crude oil for August delivery fell $6.78 or 4.7 per cent, to $138.40 a barrel at 11:09 am on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil fell as much as $9.26 to $135.92. Futures reached a record $147.27 a barrel on July 11 and have risen 88 per cent in the last year.