Crude Oil Declines as Track of Tropical Storm Rita Moves South

Crude oil fell, dropping 1 percent in New York, as concern eased that Tropical Storm Rita would hit the key refining and production areas in Texas and Louisiana.
Rita may become a hurricane today and move over the Florida Keys on a path that could reach southern Texas late this week, the National Hurricane Center said on its Web site. Prices jumped 7 percent yesterday on concern the storm would pile more damage onto Hurricane Katrina's destruction in the Gulf of Mexico.
Crude oil for October delivery lost as much as $1.22, or 1.8 percent, to $66.17 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, where it was down 64 cents at 11:10 a.m. London time. The contract yesterday jumped $4.39, or 7 percent, to $67.39 the biggest increase since December 26, 2001.
Louisiana and Texas account for 44 percent of U.S. refining capacity. Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BP Plc and Chevron Corp. said yesterday they were pulling workers from platforms in Rita's path.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is meeting today in Vienna, where it's likely to approve a plan to offer all its spare oil-production capacity to any customers that ask for additional supplies, the group's president said.
`Astronomical Rise'
Brent crude oil for November slipped 67 cents, or 1 percent, to $64.94 on London's International Petroleum Exchange. The price climbed 6.2 percent yesterday.
Average gasoline pump prices in the U.S. yesterday fell to $2.788 a gallon from $2.805 a gallon on Sept. 16, according to the AAA motorists' group. Prices have declined 8.8 percent from a record average of $3.057 on September 2.
Crude oil prices in New York, which reached a record $70.85 a barrel on August 30, are still 44 percent higher than a year ago.
The October contract expires at the end of trading today. The more actively traded November contract rose $4.17, or 6.6 percent, to $67.51 a barrel yesterday. It declined 1.1 percent today.