Business | You Inc. | Erie Inc.

 
    Erie 2000 | Erie 2001 | Erie 2002 | Erie 2003 | Erie 2004 | Erie 2005 | Erie 2006  
 
May 24, 4:03 PM EDT

Oil ends week down 2 pct on tepid demand outlook

Business Video
Interactives
Brazil drills deep into ocean for oil
History's impact on oil prices
Latest News
Marathon Oil says talks end on possible stake sale

US boom transforming global oil trade

Buy AP Photo Reprints
Interactives
Producers Tap Old Wells in Search of Oil

NEW YORK (AP) -- The price of oil fell 2 percent this week, as oil traders worried about global demand and shared the stock market's concerns about possible changes to the Federal Reserve economic stimulus program.

The loss Friday was just 10 cents, to $94.15 a barrel. But four straight losses resulted in a weekly decline of $1.87 a barrel for the benchmark oil contract.

The global economic picture was clouded by weak manufacturing data from China. That raised questions about the strength of oil demand in the world's No. 2 economy. In the U.S., a report from the Energy Department showed the country is well-supplied with oil, and gasoline demand remains below year-ago levels.

One question overhanging the market is what the Federal Reserve's next moves will be with its monetary policy. Recent comments from Fed policy makers, including Chairman Ben Bernanke, raised concerns that the Fed will scale back its effort to support the economy sooner than traders had expected.

The uncertainty led U.S. stock markets to their first weekly loss in a month. Oil tracked stocks for most of the week, as oil traders looked to their equities counterparts for clues on how to react to the Fed.

Brent crude, a benchmark for many international oil varieties, rose 20 cents to $102.64 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

In other energy futures trading on Nymex:

- Wholesale gasoline rose 1 cent to $2.84 a gallon.

- Heating oil was flat at $2.86 a gallon.

- Natural gas fell 2 cents to $4.24 per 1,000 cubic feet.

---

Pablo Gorondi in Budapest and Pamela Sampson in Bangkok contributed to this report.

© 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

 

Copyright © 2007 CyberInk LP 814/878-1967 and Erie Times-News 814/870-1600. All rights reserved. Any copying, redistribution or retransmission of the contents of this service without the express written consent of CyberInk, LP is expressly prohibited. Read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use Statements.

Registration | Account Center | Contact Us | Weather Alerts | Subscriptions | Subscribe to The Erie Times-News
E-mail BlastsDaily e-NewsletterMobile Text Alertse-paperSubscribe to the e-Paper