Oil prices fell on Monday as rising U.S. rig count and energy demand concerns weighed on the market.

The West Texas Intermediate for March delivery decreased 0.31 U.S. dollar to settle at 52.41 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for April delivery dropped 0.59 dollar to close at 61.51 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

The U.S. oil rig count rose by seven last week, bringing the total count to 854, according to data released by oilfield services company Baker Hughes on Friday. The number of active drilling rigs in the United States increased by four to 1,049, or 74 more than the same time last year.

Traders fretted over signs of rising U.S. oil production and grew concerned about a slowdown in energy demand triggered by a weakening global economy, experts noted.

The European Commission cut its forecast for euro zone economic growth in 2019 and 2020 in its latest report, reigniting fears of global economic slowdown.

Meanwhile, a stronger U.S. dollar also made commodities priced in the currency less attractive to investors.

The U.S. dollar was up in late trading on Monday. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was up 0.44 percent to 97.0608 at 3:00 p.m.