* Oil falls more than $4 a barrel
* U.S. politicians poised to vote on banking bailout
* Benelux governments rescue Fortis
* Iran avoids new sanctions in UN council vote
(Recasts, adds analyst comment, updates prices, previous PERTH)
LONDON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Oil fell more than $4 a barrel
on Monday, pressured partly by gains in the U.S. dollar as well
as signs the financial crisis is spreading beyond the United
States to Europe.
Benelux governments stepped in to rescue Belgian-Dutch
banking group Fortis and Britain nationalised mortgage lender
Bradford & Bingley.
In Washington, Congress prepared to vote on a $700 billion
government rescue for the financial sector.
U.S. light crude for November delivery <CLc1> fell $3.43 to
$103.46 a barrel by 0943 GMT, adding to Friday's losses of
$1.13.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> fell $3.22 to $100.32.
"There are two factors at play here," said Jonathan
Kornafel, Asia director of Hudson Capital Energy in Singapore.
"One is the short term effect of a rally in the U.S. dollar
and second is ongoing concerns about U.S. demand and elsewhere,"
he said. "I think the demand destruction will be significant
enough to cut quite deeply into oil prices.".
The U.S. dollar rose against the euro, on hopes for the U.S.
bailout bill and on concerns about the spread of the credit
crisis to Europe's banks. []
U.S. congressional leaders from both parties said they had
reached a tentative agreement on Sunday and prepared to vote on
the rescue plan on Monday.
Questions remain over the plan's ability to restore
confidence to shaky markets and head off a deep recession.
[]
"From a commodity perspective, our more pressing concern is
to what extent the U.S. virus spreads globally and specifically
to China," said Deutsche Bank in a research note.
"We expect demand destruction fears into early 2009 will
bear down on many commodity prices."
Falls in demand in the United States and other developed
economies have contributed to the market's retreat from record
highs above $147 a barrel in July.
Analysts said mounting evidence of an economic slowdown in
the United States, Europe and Japan would continue to weigh on
prices.
"While supply-side uncertainty suggests a floor near $100,
the economic context for this quarter and next is weak,
suggesting price rallies will be capped and/or sold into," Harry
Tchilinguirian, a senior oil market analyst at BNP Paribas, said
in a research report.
The slow pace of recovery, following shutdowns due to
hurricanes, in oil and gas production in the U.S. Gulf of
Mexico, home to a quarter of U.S. output, could offer some
support for prices in the short term.
Iran, the world's fourth-largest exporter of oil, has
avoided new sanctions in a United Nations vote at the weekend.
The U.N. Security Council unanimously passed a resolution on
Saturday that again orders Iran to halt its nuclear enrichment
work but imposes none of the new sanctions Washington and its
allies wanted. []
Political tensions over Iran's nuclear programme was one of
the factors that helped drive oil higher this year.
(Reporting by Jane Merriman in London and Fayen Wong in Perth,
editing by Anthony Barker)
