Oil tanker ships sit waiting outside a port (Getty)
Associated Press via USA Today
Oil refineries on the East Coast are shutting down or throttling back in advance of a massive storm.
A Philadelphia refinery that is the biggest on the East Coast was scaling back. And the second-biggest East Coast refinery, a Phillips 66 operation in Linden, N.J., is shut down.
Refineries on the East Coast produce about 2 million barrels a day of oil, or about 15% of the USA's consumption
Oil prices have not moved much. They're down 30 cents to $85.98 in morning trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Traders are balancing two big risks. One is that the storm will damage refineries, , which normally would drive up gasoline prices. But, businesses are shutting down and people are staying home, which would reduce gasoline demand - and prices.
Nationally, gasoline prices at the pump fell a half-penny from Sunday, to $3.45 per gallon.