The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that declines in energy stocks weighed on major North American stock indexes Wednesday, with oil prices dropping 4 per cent as a larger-than-expected rise in U.S. gasoline inventories increased worries about fuel demand. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe says that U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell by $2.94, or 4.1 per cent, to $69.38 a barrel -- the first time they dipped below $70 since July (all figures U.S.). "There is demand destruction coming in from the fuel side. The market is more demand-focused than supply focused right now," said Dennis Kissler at BOK Financial. Concerns over China's economic health also weighed on prices, a day after rating agency Moody's lowered the outlook on China's A1 rating to negative from stable. U.S. gasoline stocks rose by 5.4 million barrels last week, the Energy Information Administration said, more than quintuple the one-million-barrel rise that analysts had expected. U.S. gasoline futures plummeted to their lowest in two years. Crude inventories fell by 4.6 million barrels, far exceeding the 1.4-million-barrel drop analysts had expected. The S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 101.72 points at 20,274.21.