Oil Slides With U.S. Refinery Outages Boding Poorly for Demand
- Plant restarts may take a week after cold blast eases
- U.S. crude stockpiles tumbled more than 7 million barrels
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Oil fell the most in nearly a month alongside a broader market selloff with the ongoing energy crisis in the U.S. likely keeping refineries shut for another week.
Futures in New York declined 1% in a choppy trading session on Thursday. While U.S. oil output has plunged nearly 40% amid the unprecedented cold blast in parts of the country, crude demand from refineries is expected to remain weak as Gulf Coast fuel-making plants make repairs and take time to restart following operating issues caused by the freezing temperatures. Further pressuring prices, U.S. equities weakened after initial jobless claims hit a four-week high.