Balanced News: : U.S. oil futures settle with a loss of nearly 2%

Oil futures finished lower on Tuesday, with U.S. prices down nearly 2% as traders weighed demand expectations following the latest U.S. economic data. “Crude prices tumbled after a steady dose of bad news from the economy: both manufacturing and service sectors remained in contraction territory and on many downbeat earnings,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery CLH23 fell $1.49, or 1.8%, to settle at $80.13 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.