Exports of Ecuador's flagship Oriente crude remain suspended under a force majeure declaration as the spread of anti-government protests hurts oil output, state-run Petroecuador said on Wednesday.
At least eight people have died and road blockades have led to food and medicine shortages. The crisis has halved oil output, the country's main source of revenue, to some 234,500 barrels per day while forcing reductions in fuel prices, though protest leaders have called the price cuts insufficient. The energy minister on Sunday said oil output could be completely halted in a matter of days over "acts of vandalism, taking over wells and closing roads."
