NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices fell Friday as weak manufacturing data in China overcame a report showing factory activity in the U.S. picked up in June after a sluggish May. Benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August delivery declined 48 cents, or 0.5 percent, to settle at $94.94 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It traded as low as $93.46 earlier in the day. In London, Brent crude fell 71 cents to settle at $111.77 per barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange. Oil fell after China reported that its manufacturing industry cooled off in June, slipping to its slowest pace in 28 months. Activity slowed down as credit tightened due to inflation-fighting measures and weaker oversea demand. The country is still expected to drive world oil demand for years to come, but slower manufacturing growth means demand for fuels may not grow as quickly. In the U.S., however, factory activity picked up in June, in part because of lower fuel prices. The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing executives, said Friday that its index of manufacturing activity has increased for 23 straight months. Trading could be volatile ahead of a long weekend in the U.S., where markets will be closed on Monday for Independence Day holiday, analysts said. After ending last year around $91 a barrel, oil peaked at nearly $114 in late April. Crude has given up more than 16 percent since the beginning of May. Worried about oil's impact on the global recovery, the 28-nation International Energy Agency, which includes the U.S., has pledged to release 60 million barrels of crude and refined products onto the market in an effort to prevent another price spike. In other Nymex trading for August contracts, heating oil dropped 2.18 cents to settle at $2.9245 per gallon and gasoline futures added less than a penny to settle at $2.9726 per gallon. Natural gas fell 6.3 cents to settle at $4.33 per 1,000 cubic feet.
