REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, LONDON - The price of oil dropped Monday after a survey showed a slight deterioration in China's manufacturing activity.

By midday in Europe, the benchmark contract for US crude for March delivery was down 24 cents to $97.25 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 74 cents on Friday. Brent crude, used to set prices for international varieties of crude, was down 43 cents to 105.97 USD on the ICE exchange in London.

A Chinese index reported Saturday by a government-affiliated agency fell from 51 points in December to 50.5 in January, just above the 50 level that signifies expansion.

Weaker manufacturing in China, the world's second-largest economy, could reduce global demand for energy, though the survey results may reflect Chinese New Year effects. This year the holiday spans late January and early February, reducing working days in both months. Prices were pulled down last week by forecasts of warmer weather in the US, following a spate of extreme cold in many areas.

In other energy futures trading on Nymex:

—Wholesale gasoline was down 0.2 cents at 2.633 USD a gallon

—Heating oil dropped 1.2 cents to 2.985 USD a gallon.

—Natural gas fell 8.7 cents to 4.856 USD per 1,000 cubic feet.

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