Oil falls below $89 on US manufacturing worries

Benchmark crude for January delivery was down 27 cents to $88.82 per barrel at midday Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract finished up 18 cents at $89.09 a barrel on the Nymex on Monday.

Manufacturing the U.S. shrank in November to its weakest level since July 2009, a trade group said Monday, because companies are worried about the "fiscal cliff" — sharp tax increases and spending cuts that take effect in 2013 unless U.S. political leaders strike a budget deal before then.