Crude Declines in New York Amid European Growth, Price

Oil declined to near its lowest in six weeks in New York as economic contraction in Europe countered signs of growth in the U.S. and China, the world’s largest consumers of crude.

West Texas Intermediate fell as much as 0.7 percent, erasing an earlier gain of 0.5 percent. Euro-region manufacturing declined for an eighth month in March, London-based Markit Economics said today. While China’s Purchasing Managers’ Index yesterday rose to a one-year high of 53.1 in March, analysts described the gain as seasonal and a separate survey showed exporters struggling.