Crude in London slid below $45 a barrel for the first time since March 2009 on concerns Chinese demand is slowing just as Iran and the U.S. threaten to expand a global glut. Brent oil fell as much as 6.5 percent, extending a 7.3 percent drop last week that was the biggest in five months. Commodities sank to the lowest in 16 years as forecasts for the weakest Chinese growth since 1990 spurred investors to seek out the safest assets. U.S. energy companies declined as much as 6 percent on the Standard & Poor’s 500 index. Losses eased after equities pulled back from the brink of a correction. Iran’s Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh vowed to expand output “at any cost,” according to the ministry’s news website. The number of active oil rigs in the U.S. rose for the seventh time in eight weeks, data showed Friday. Oil’s worsening […]