Oil prices fell Wednesday with the government reporting that crude inventories continue to grow as businesses and consumers slash energy spending.

Light, sweet crude for March delivery sank 5 cents to $41.53 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $4.15 overnight to settle at $41.58 amid more evidence of decline in the U.S. housing industry, more job cuts and plunging consumer confidence.

From a logical point of view, there is no reason for spot NYMEX crude oil to trade above $40/ barrel. In the near term prices are likely to swing between the mid-$30 on the downside and $60 range on the high side according to analyst and trader Stephen Schork and Ritterbusch.

“Traders are hoarding oil now in the hope of a recovery in the price in perhaps one month’s time if OPEC compiles with production cuts,” said Mark Pervan, senior commodity strategist with ANZ Bank in Melbourne.

On the other hand, Strong investor buying on Monday pushed the price of gold above $900 a troy ounce, hitting a 3½-month high in dollar terms and posting all-time highs in euro and sterling, in a stark sign of money seeking refuge from equities and bond markets.

Traders said that investors, particularly in continental Europe and the UK, were pouring money into gold exchange-traded funds – a popular way to gain access to the metal – and also noted strong buying of physical gold, from coins to bars.