US oil prices fall for 8th week after grim China factory data

London

US oil prices headed for their eighth consecutive week of falls on Friday, the longest losing streak since 1986, after a sharp drop in Chinese manufacturing increased worries over the health of the world's biggest energy consumer.

Activity in China's factory sector shrank at its fastest pace in almost six-and-a-half years in August as domestic and export demand dwindled, adding to worries about lower consumption of crude in the second biggest oil user.