UPDATE 7-Oil ends below $75 on weak U.S. economic data

                                
 * New U.S. jobless claims rise to nine-month high
                                
 * U.S. mid-Atlantic region factory activity slows
                                
 * Conference Board top indicators index up in July
                                
 * Market plays down deepening Iran-U.S. tensions
                                
 * Coming up: NYMEX September crude expires on Friday
 (Updates with U.S. settlement price, market activity,
details)
                                
 By Gene Ramos
                                
 NEW YORK, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Oil prices closed below $75
per barrel on Thursday, down for a second day in a row, as weak
U.S. data fueled worries that the economic recovery is
stalling, deepening concerns about demand in the world's
biggest oil consumer.
                                
 The decline erased gains brought on early by an upgrade in
growth prospects for Germany, Europe's strongest economy.
Losses piled up from Wednesday, when data showed U.S. petroleum
inventories soared to a record high.
                                
 U.S. September crude <CLc1> settled down 99 cents at $74.43
a barrel, after hitting a low of $73.96. (Graphic
http://link.reuters.com/kys95n)
                                
 In London, ICE front-month Brent <LCOc1> last traded down
$1.11 at $75.36. Brent's premium against U.S. crude <CL-LCO1=R>
dropped back to below $1 a day after it rose to $1.39 -- the
highest since early June.
                                
 Factory activity in the U.S. mid-Atlantic region contracted
unexpectedly in August for the first time in more than a year,
according to the Philadelphia Federal Reserve. [ID:nN19129903]
                                
 The U.S. Labor Department reported initial claims for state
unemployment benefits rose to 500,000 in the week ended Aug.
24, more than expected and the highest since mid-November.
[ID:nN19350083]
                                
 The widely followed leading index of U.S. economic indicators from the private-sector Conference Board rose 0.1
percent in July, in line with expectations. But the June data
was revised lower to -0.3 percent from the initial report of
-0.2 percent. [ID:nOSL014688]
                                
 "The rise in jobless claims and weaker regional
manufacturing report from the Federal Reserve reinforced the
perception that the economic recovery is wavering and in an
environment of poor fundamentals, with (oil) inventories as
high as they are," said Gene McGillian, analyst at Tradition
Energy in Stamford, Connecticut.
                                
 The unexpected rise in U.S. jobless claims sent global
markets lower and weakened the dollar, prompting investors to
seek safety in U.S. Treasury debt and gold. [ID:nN19250910]
                                
 Wall Street tumbled as the disappointing jobs and regional
manufacturing data inflamed debate over whether the economic
recovery has stalled. [.N]
                                
 The dollar slumped to near a 15-year low against the yen,
but rose against the euro. [USD/] Gold trimmed gains after an
early rally driven by the jobless claims data fizzled. [GOL/]
                                
 "The U.S. is still by far the largest oil consumer
worldwide," said Eugen Weinberg, commodities analyst at
Commerzbank in Frankfurt. "So a dent in sentiment will keep
prices under pressure for some time, until we see the recovery
of the jobs market in the U.S., because the weak point in the
U.S. economy is not corporate earnings, it's jobs."
                                
 Oil found support early in the session from a rally in
equity markets in Asia and Europe. European shares rose after
Germany's central bank upgraded its economic growth forecast
for this year. [ID:nLDE67I0WY] <.FTEU3> [.EU]
                                
 Analysts downplayed the effect on oil prices of deepening
tensions between Iran and the United States. Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei, the country's supreme leader, said on Wednesday that
Iran would not talk with the United States in the current
climate. [ID:nLDE67H1TQ]
                                
 U.S. STOCKPILES
                                
 Even with Thursday's decline, the U.S. crude benchmark
remained above the six-week low of $73.83 touched on Wednesday,
when the Department of Energy said total domestic commercial
petroleum stockpiles last week jumped to 1.13 billion barrels.
It was the highest level since 1990, when the government began
reporting weekly data. [EIA/S].
                                
 Inventories hit a record despite drawdowns in crude oil and
gasoline storage, prompting analysts to conclude that supplies
were growing faster than demand.
                                
 Meanwhile, a report on Thursday from industry data provider
Genscape showed that as of Aug. 17 supplies at the key Cushing,
Oklahoma, delivery hub fell 985,368 barrels to 38.9 million
barrels. [ID:nNLLJJE6CR] The EIA  data on Wednesday showed that
crude stored at the hub fell 687,000 barrels to 37.04 million
barrels in the week to Aug. 13.
 (Additional reporting by Robert Gibbons in New York, David
Turner in London, Alejandro Barbajosa in Singapore; Editing by
Walter Bagley)