Oil fell Monday on the realization that a short-term fix in Spain won't offer a long-term solution to Europe's debt crisis.
A multi-billion dollar bailout loan for Spain's banks generated initial enthusiasm in the global stock, bond and energy markets. But by the close in New York, the good feeling had given way to skepticism.
Benchmark oil fell $1.40 to $82.70 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, which is used to price international varieties of oil, dropped $1.47 to $98 per barrel in London. The broad S&P 500 stock index fell 1.3 percent.
Meanwhile, motorists are continuing to see a steady decline in pump prices. The national average for gasoline fell less than a penny overnight to $3.54 per gallon, according to AAA, Wright Express and the Oil Price Information Service. That's 19 cents less than a year ago. Gas has dropped 50 cents per gallon in a little more than two months.