WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices were subdued on Thursday amid the Fed's shift in policy guidance and fears over China growth.
The downside was capped after official data from the U.S. EIA (Energy Information Administration) showed decline in crude oil inventories in the U.S. for the week ending December 13.
Benchmark Brent crude futures were down 0.1 percent at $73.33 a barrel in European trade while WTI crude futures dropped 0.8 percent to $70.01.
Investors fretted about weaker demand after the U.S. Federal Reserve announced an interest rate cut of 25 basis points, as widely expected, but forecast it would make just two interest rate cuts of 25 basis points each in 2025, fewer than four seen in September.
Heightened U.S.-China tensions also fueled worries about an economic slowdown.
According to media reports, U.S. authorities are considering a ban on China's TP-Link Technology Co over potential national security concerns.
In another development, China issued rules today to tighten scrutiny of foreign accounting firms' domestic operations as part of efforts to rein in accounting failures and fraud.
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