NEW YORK, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices slumped on Monday, as rising U.S. shale output and Cushing inventories deepened concerns over a global supply glut.

Oil output from seven major U.S. shale basins is projected to surge 134,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 8.166 million bpd in January next year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in a report on Monday.

Adding to the worrying impact, oil stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, a delivery hub for U.S. crude futures, rose over one million barrels between Dec. 11 and Dec. 14, exceeding investors' expectation, according to data released by U.S. energy data provider Genscape.

Analysts said that the increased inventories have pulled the crude into a deeper bearish market.

The West Texas Intermediate for February delivery fell 1.32 U.S. dollars to settle at 49.88 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for February delivery was down 0.67 dollar to close at 59.61 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange. Enditem

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