Oil futures extended their decline Thursday after data showed a record number of continuing jobless claims as well as a decline in orders for U.S.-made durable goods. Crude for March delivery fell $1.51, or 3.5%, to $40.66 a barrel in electronic trading on Globex. On Wednesday, oil futures ended up 1.4%. "Crude-oil prices are still in the middle of a broad range, with prices remaining vulnerable to further demand disappointments," said analysts at Sucden Financial Research. Thursday morning brought more bad news about the U.S. economy, which in turn rekindled concerns about slowing energy demand. The Labor Department reported that U.S. unemployment lines stretched to the longest on record. Continuing jobless claims rose by 159,000 in the week ending Jan. 17 to a seasonally adjusted 4.78 million, the most since the government's records begin in 1967. Read more. Separately, orders for U.S.-made durable goods slumped 2.6% in December on weaker demand for almost all product except defense-related items, the Commerce Department reported. Orders have fallen for fifth straight month. The drop in the fourth quarter has been pronounced. See Economic Report. Bolstering the economy In a move to bolster the failing economy, the House of Representatives approved an $819 billion economic stimulus plan late Wednesday by a 244-188 party-line vote. The bill would cut taxes for individuals and businesses, provide billions of dollars for infrastructure projects, help states balance their budgets, and provide relief to millions of people who've lost their jobs or homes. See full story. The bill now heads to the Senate, with a goal of putting the legislation on President Barack Obama's desk by mid-February. Democrats hold a 255-178 majority in the House, and an effective 58-41 majority in the Senate. "We suspect that over the next few days, the tone in the commodity markets will remain somewhat positive, as focus reverts on the actions that the Obama administration will be taking with respect to the current economic crisis," said Edward Meir, an analyst at MF Global, in a research note. In addition to pushing through the stimulus package, the administration is also looking at the idea of creating a so-called "bad bank" that would pick up toxic mortgage securities from financial institutions. Read more. "We still maintain that making progress on the banking issue will provide a big shot in the arm in terms of confidence and should help drive commodity prices measurably higher, at least temporarily," Meir said. OPEC will weigh further production cuts The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is ready to make further cuts in oil production in coming months if prices and global demand don't stabilize, the oil cartel's secretary general said at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Switzerland on Thursday. It will be clear in coming weeks whether cuts totaling 4.2 million barrels a day instituted in recent months are being met by OPEC members, said Abdalla Salem El Badri, in a panel discussion on the energy outlook for the year ahead. Preliminary indications are that compliance will be near 100%, he said. Read more. Next, oil producing nations must see how the market reacts to the previous cuts, El Badri said. OPEC "will not hesitate to take (some more) out of the market" if needed, he said. Also on Globex, March reformulated gasoline was flat at $1.20 a gallon and March heating oil fell 2 cents to $1.39 a gallon. March natural gas futures rose 2 cents to $4.44 per million British thermal units. The Energy Information Administration will report the latest data on natural-gas supplies at 10:30 a.m. Eastern on Thursday. IHS Global Insight is projecting a storage withdrawal of 192 billion cubic feet for the week ended Jan. 23.

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