The Texas Gulf Coast was bracing for Tropical Storm Harvey to make landfall by Friday, bringing with it powerful winds, torrential rains and the possibility that it could strengthen into a hurricane. Harvey was about 370 miles (595 km) southeast of Port Mansfield, Texas, by early Thursday as it moved across the Gulf of Mexico with maximum sustained winds of 45 miles (72 km) per hour, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. U.S. benchmark gasoline prices RBc1 hit a three-week high on Thursday as the storm took aim at the center of the country’s refining industry. The storm has also forced energy companies including Royal Dutch Shell ( RDSa.L ), Anadarko Petroleum ( APC.N ) and Exxon Mobil ( XOM.N ) to evacuate staff from oil and gas platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Hurricane, tropical storm and storm surge watches were in effect […]