Key oil price index for the Beihai Oilfield sees first drop of the year.

A key indicator in the physical oil market in the North Sea has seen a drop for the first time in about a year, as traders are working to address weakening refinery demand and increased supply from outside the region. Over the past week, weekly crude oil swap contracts for Brent crude have dropped rapidly. According to data from PVM Oil Associates Ltd., prices in the near-term have fallen below prices in the long-term since mid-June.