Crude oil prices edged lower on Monday amid renewed concerns about the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the global economy. The energy prices are likely to set even lower as demand concerns may continue to weigh in.

The US light crude oil WTI and Brent futures are down by 1% to 49.86 USD per barrel and 53.98 USD per Brent barrel, respectively.

The prices remain under pressure due to the fact the OPEC+ extraordinary meeting is unlikely to make a specific decision on further cuts in yield to deal with low demand due to the coronavirus. The group’s ministers and their allies are unlikely to hold an early meeting this month, while the planned meeting in March will take place, according to Azerbaijan’s Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov. Russia is resisting Saudi Arabia’s efforts to reduce production after OPEC+ technology experts recommended a further reduction of 600,000 barrels per day by June.

Crude oil prices have plummeted after the coronavirus epidemic caused chaos and worries for the world’s largest oil importer, while Chinese refineries cut the amount they process by about 15%. Prices can be put under additional pressure if negotiations aimed at ending the conflict in Libya, where a blockade of ports pushes production to its lowest level since 2011, lead to a resumption of production, Bloomberg said.

If OPEC fails to reach an agreement on supply cuts, there may be a further drop in prices, said Stephen Innes, Asia-Pacific market strategist, in a note. A decline in US drilling activity will be needed to achieve a sufficient reduction in world oil supplies, he added.