While uncertainties mount as Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are locked in a close race ahead of the presidential elections on Tuesday, crude is seen trading near the lowest level in almost four months. Crude is trading as of this writing in a tight range around the $85.05 a barrel, with the highest at $85.21 and the lowest at $84.63. Brent is trading around the $105.90 a barrel as demand worries persist due to the uncertain recovery of the global economy. Investors are unconvinced about the recovery in U.S. and China, the world’s biggest oil consumers, while fuel use by key consumers like Japan, France, Spain and Italy continues to drop as their economies are weakening. This comes at a time when Saudi Arabia is increasing its oil production to avoid a supply shortage amid the continued threats from the Middle East and Iran, adding more downside pressures on oil prices. The unclear political picture in the U.S. is complicating the outlook for global recovery, especially with the U.S. budget being uncertain and the looming budget cuts and tax increases, which could push the economy back into recession in 2013 and cut oil demand. Crude fell on Friday more than $2 after the U.S. government allowed foreign tankers to bring fuel to the East Coast from other U.S. ports to cover some of the shortages caused by hurricane Sandy. Beside the U.S. elections and the G20 meeting, investors will also closely watch this week key economic data, including Bank of England’s and the ECB’s rate decisions, China’s CPI, Germany’s industrial activity and Australia’s unemployment rate.

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