The U.S. will face a tighter supply-and-demand picture for crude oil and petroleum products this year and next than previously expected, government forecasters said Tuesday. The U.S. Energy Information Administration lowered its forecasts for U.S. oil-production growth in 2014 and 2015 in its short-term energy outlook, and raised its expectations for the country’s consumption of oil products. The U.S. is likely to produce 8.42 million barrels a day of crude oil this year, down from 8.54 million barrels a day in the EIA’s previous forecast but still up from 7.44 million barrels a day in 2013. For 2015, the EIA forecasts production of 9.19 million barrels a day of oil, down from 9.29 million barrels a day previously. The output forecasts were adjusted because of “indications that severe weather this winter has caused temporary slowdowns in completing new wells,” according to the EIA. The EIA expects consumption of […]