West Texas Intermediate crude narrowed its discount to Brent to the least in more than a year as U.S. economic growth outpaced that of Europe , bolstering demand for the American benchmark oil. The spread between WTI and Brent shrank to $2.63 at today’s close, the smallest gap since Aug. 9. 2013. The U.S. economy expanded in the second quarter at the fastest rate since the fourth quarter of 2011, government data showed Sept. 26. The improving American outlook contrasts with Europe, where a gauge of economic confidence published today slipped to the lowest level since November. “It’s a tale of two cities,” John Kilduff , a partner at Again Capital LLC, a New York-based hedge fund that focuses on energy, said by phone. “The respective demand environments in the U.S. and Europe have diverged and that’s being reflected in the price.” WTI’s discount to the European grade was […]