* Oil prices decoupled from equities on Thursday
* Coming Up: U.S. Q2 GDP; 1230 GMT
* For a technical view, click: []
(Adds OPEC background survey)
By Alejandro Barbajosa
SINGAPORE, July 30 (Reuters) - Oil slipped on Friday,
heading for a fourth consecutive weekly settlement within the
$75-$80 range, as investors focused on a slowing economy and
rising inventories in top consumer the United States.
U.S. September crude <CLc1> shed 22 cents to $78.14 a
barrel at 0511 GMT, while ICE Brent <LCOc1> fell 15 cents to
$77.42.
Asian stock markets declined on Friday ahead of data
expected to show U.S. economic growth slowed to 2.5 percent in
the second quarter from 2.7 percent in the first quarter.
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"The market is going to be particularly sensitive to the
GDP data because the U.S. economy still has big influence on
oil demand," said Mark Pervan, a senior commodities analyst at
ANZ in Melbourne.
U.S. crude prices on Thursday climbed almost 1.8 percent,
the first gain of the week despite falling equity markets,
boosted by a weaker dollar, which renders imports cheaper for
developing economies.
But reports showing soaring crude stockpiles in the U.S.
had forced prices towards the bottom of the recent price range
earlier in the week by signalling weak demand.
"The correlation has been breaking down with equities, as
the market is paying more attention to the supply data," Pervan
said. "The market has been switching from demand indicators to
the supply indicators as the DOE (U.S. Department of Energy)
data bucked the trend on Wednesday and created a bit of
indigestion."
The slowdown in the U.S. economic recovery from the worst
downturn since the 1930s was also flagged by a stream of weak
economic data in the past couple of months, and a softer report
on Friday could revive fears of a double-dip recession among
investors.
U.S. crude inventories jumped the most in almost two years
last week, by more than 7 million barrels, the DOE said in a
weekly inventory report on Wednesday.
ECONOMY HEADWINDS
Oil has traded in a range between $70 and $80 for almost
two months. Prices are unlikely to move above $80 a barrel
unless inventories fall, Pervan said.
Industrial output in Japan, the world's third-largest oil
user, unexpectedly fell in June and manufacturers expect
further declines in coming months, boding ill for the fragile
economic recovery faced with moderating demand from overseas.
[] []
Asian stocks sagged on Friday after U.S. technology
companies issued glum outlooks, and after downbeat comments
from a Federal Reserve official gave investors reason to book
profits after a steady rally this month. []
"A lot of the movement in equity markets has been driven by
earnings results, which are not a particularly good guide for
the US economy," Pervan said.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC) has for the past year and a half expressed a preference
for oil to remain stable around $75 a barrel, saying that price
encourages investment to sustain and increase production
capacity and does not put the global economic recovery at risk.
OPEC is meeting only half its promised cuts in oil supply
this month thanks to a big jump in exports from Nigeria and
despite a smaller decline in production in Angola, a Reuters
survey showed on Thursday. []
(Editing by Ed Lane)
