quarter demand growth in the United States slowed to 250,000 bpd, or 1.2 percent, from 340,000 bpd, the IEA said. China's demand growth slackened to 4.5 percent in the first quarter of this year from 19.3 percent a year ago. The West's energy watchdog trimmed its annual China demand growth projection by 30,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 470,000 bpd. "That would put more pressure on prices, particularly the downward forecast on Chinese demand. China has been the prime driver of the global rise in consumption over the past year or so," said Daniel Hynes, analyst at ANZ Institutional Banking. London's Brent crude oil dropped $1.73 on Thursday to $48.34 a barrel, also its lowest since February. --More 2221 Local Time 1921 GMT
