US crude accelerated a drop towards $104 a barrel after the Kuwaiti oil minister said Opec is in talks to increase production.

Opec is in consultations regarding a potential output rise, Kuwait's Oil Minister said on Tuesday, but added that there was no decision for the group to produce over quotas yet.

"We are in consultations about a potential output increase," Sheikh Ahmad al-Abdullah al-Sabah told reporters.      Asked if Kuwait has increased its own production, Al-Sabah said, "We did not increase production, sticking to quotas."     

US crude shed $1.67 to $103.77 at 0628 GMT. - Reuters