Oil falls below $70 for first time since December on doubts about the global economy

Oil tumbles again, below $70 a barrel

NEW YORK — Oil prices fell Friday for the third straight day, weighed down by a stronger dollar and persistent doubts about the health of the global economy.

Benchmark crude for March delivery lost $3.38, nearly 5 percent, to $69.76 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It fell as low as $69.50 a barrel, the lowest since Dec. 15.

Energy prices started the year on a high note, surging as economists predicted that China, India and other developing nations would aggressively boost petroleum imports to feed their growing economies.

But China has since taken steps to control risky bank lending and cool off its economy. And Greece, Portugal and Spain have pushed the euro lower as they struggle to handle massive budget deficits.

The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the greenback versus other major currencies, jumped Friday to its highest level since July. Oil, which is priced in U.S. currency, tends to fall when the dollar strengthens and makes barrels more expensive for holders of foreign money.

Even a surprise drop in the unemployment rate — from 10 percent to 9.7 percent — wasn’t enough to encourage investors. Manufacturers and retailers may have added jobs, but the government report showed the economy has a long way to go.

Meanwhile, Americans are burning much less fuel than previous years. The Energy Information Administration said this week that U.S. petroleum consumption has dropped for four straight weeks.

“There’s a lot of oil sloshing around out there,” said Jim Ritterbusch, president of energy consultancy Ritterbusch and Associates. “If I were to give a fair price for oil it would be closer to $60″ a barrel.

Retail gasoline prices increased this week for the first time since the middle of January. The national average added a half penny at $2.664 a gallon, according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service.

A gallon of regular unleaded is 2.1 cents cheaper than a month ago, but it’s 75.7 cents more expensive than the same time last year.

In other Nymex trading in March contracts, heating oil dropped 7.8 cents at $1.8576 a gallon, and gasoline fell 7.6 cents to $1.8748 a gallon. Natural gas added 11.1 cents to $5.527 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent crude gave up $2.28 to $69.85 on the ICE futures exchange.

Associated Press writers Pablo Gorondi in Budapest, Hungary and Alex Kennedy in Singapore contributed to this report.