Oil dips below $124 on concern over US economy

Bernanke's comments about rising prices sent the dollar higher and diminished the chance that oil would exceed the record highs of last month in the short term. Bernanke signaled the Fed is inclined to leave rates where they are for now, but some analysts said he might be taking a step toward an eventual rise in rates later this year, or early next year.

Evidence continues to mount that oil prices, nearly twice what they were a year ago, have finally cut into demand.

The latest MasterCard SpendingPulse survey found that demand for gasoline in the U.S. fell by 4.7 percent last week — which included the long Memorial Day holiday weekend — compared to the same week last year. Averaged over the last four weeks, demand was down 6 percent last week compared to last year.