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 Benchmark oil closed down $1.83 to $89.88 per barrel in New York.
The economy created 114,000 jobs in September, in line with what
economists had expected. But those extra commuters might not budge
the needle on gas demand, which was down 2.5 percent from a year
earlier in the four weeks ended Sept. 28, according to Energy
Department figures released Wednesday.
"That doesn't suggest really strong job growth," Gene McGillian,
broker and analyst at Tradition Energy. McGillian said the report,
combined with the fact that there are ample supplies of oil and low
demand, drove prices lower.
Oil prices were volatile toward the end of the week as traders try
to gauge the strength of global oil demand while also watching
developments surrounding Syria for any signs of a disruption in
supplies from the Middle East. The last time oil had a three-day stretch where it gained or lost 2
percent or more each day was from June 20 to June 22.
The national average for gasoline rose a half-cent to $3.789 a
gallon. Californians saw an extraordinary spike in gas prices
because of refinery issues -- up 17 cents on average overnight --
while prices in most other states held steady or declined by a penny
or two.
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In London, Brent crude, which is used to price international
varieties of oil, fell 56 cents to $112.02.
Among other energy futures traded in New York:
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Natural gas gave up a penny to end at $3.396 per 1,000 cubic feet.
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Heating oil fell 3.25 cents to $3.16 per gallon.
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Wholesale gasoline gained a 10th of a
penny to settle at $2.95 per gallon.
[Associated
Press]
Copyright 2012 The Associated
Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
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