Oil prices closed below $75 a barrel for the first time in nearly 14 months on Wednesday after OPEC slashed its 2009 petroleum demand forecast. Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell $4.09, or 5.2 percent, to settle at $74.54 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was crude's lowest settlement prices since Aug. 31, 2007. Oil prices which have tumbled 49% since soaring to an all-time high $147.27 on July 11, reported AP.
