US cranks up petrol output as oil falls below $73 a barrel

OIL fell below $73 a barrel yesterday as refiners in the United States cranked up gasoline output, easing supply crunch worries ahead of the peak demand summer driving season.

London Brent crude was down 25 cents at $72.96 a barrel at 1459 GMT.

US light crude futures fell 8 cents to $72.75. US refiners produced 375,000 barrels per day (bpd) more gasoline last week than the week earlier, government data showed. That prevented gasoline stocks from falling as much as analysts had forecast last week.