* Ongoing Middle East, North Africa tensions support price
* Worries about strong ECB emergency funding keep check
(Updates quotes, prices, previous SINGAPORE)
By Zaida Espana
LONDON, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Brent crude oil rose to $103 a
barrel on Friday, as tensions in the Middle East and North
Africa fanned fears of supply disruption in the region.
Brent crude <LCOc1> rose 16 cents to $102.75 by 1012 GMT,
while U.S. crude <CLc1> shed 58 cents to $85.78 a barrel, after
jumping more than $1.00 the previous day.
Parts of the Middle East and Arab North Africa could see
renewed public anger towards their governments on Friday, with
the focus on Bahrain and Libya as protesters bury people killed
in recent clashes. []
Egypt's Suez canal remains in focus after Iran appeared
intent on Thursday on sending two warships through, in a move
Israel called a "provocation." []
"We suspect that the markets will be fairly well bid heading
into the weekend, as developments in the Middle East should
prevent aggressive short positions from building up," MF Global
analyst Edward Meier said in a note.
"However, it will likely be Brent that will likely see the
most price sensitivity in the event of a serious flare-up, as
WTI (U.S> crude) still seems to be on the defensive, pressured
by an unfriendly arb and excessive Cushing inventories."
Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Libya's
eastern city of Benghazi overnight after the security forces
killed more than 20 protesters during the previous "Day of Rage"
demonstrations. []
In Bahrain, several thousand Shi'ites attended the burial of
three of those killed in a crackdown designed to quell protests.
[]
EUROPEAN BANKS
Resurfacing worries about the health of European banks kept
gains in check, after European Central Bank figures showed
emergency overnight funding remained exceptionally elevated for
the second day running. []
Banks borrowed more than 16 billion euros in high-cost
emergency overnight funding, the highest amount since June 2009,
and fanning worries that a euro zone bank could be facing
funding issues. []
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Graphics package on the Middle East
http://r.reuters.com/nym77r
Graphic on the use of the ECB marginal lending facility
http://r.reuters.com/baf28r
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The spread between Brent and U.S. light crude <CL-LCO1=R>
eased to over $14.1, after hitting a fresh record of $16.31 a
barrel two days ago.
The U.S. light crude contract could benefit from
short-covering ahead of the expiry of the March future on
Tuesday.
Brent oil prices are forecast to drop later this year as
analysts expect the risk premium for unrest in the Middle East
to ebb, a Reuters poll showed. []
(Additional reporting by Jennifer Tan in Singapore; editing by
James Jukwey)
