* IEA trims 2011 oil demand growth forecast by 50,000 bpd
* Front-month US crude gains on Brent, curve
* Enbridge says oil Line 6A still shut, cleanup continues
(Recasts, updates prices, market activity, changes byline,
dateline, previously LONDON)
By David Sheppard
NEW YORK, Sept 10 (Reuters) - U.S. crude rose more than 2
percent to $76 a barrel on Friday following the shutdown of a
major pipeline supplying Canadian oil to the United States, but
a leading forecaster said world demand would remain tepid.
The U.S. crude contract for delivery in October <CLc1> rose
to a peak of $76.56 a barrel, the highest level since
mid-August, after Enbridge Inc <ENB.TO> said pipeline 6A
remained shut as the cleanup of an oil leak continued near
Romeoville, Illinois. []
"Since markets dislike uncertainty, they will usually
discount a worst-case situation until some clarity is
forthcoming," Jim Ritterbusch, president at Ritterbusch &
Associates in Galena, Illinois, said in a research note.
"In this particular case, the line will not only need to be
repaired but regulatory approval will reportedly be required
before shipments on the line are restarted."
By 12:32 p.m. EDT (1632 GMT), front-month U.S. crude was
still up $1.65 a barrel at $75.90. The November contract was up
$1.11 at $76.89.
In contrast, Brent crude oil <LCOc1> in London was up just
49 cents a barrel at $79.96, with concerns about the strength
of global demand still weighing.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) said global oil
consumption growth was expected to increase a little this year
but slip in 2011 and that fuel consumption could be much weaker
if the world economy slows. []
The agency, which advises major industrial countries on
energy policy, said global oil supply was more than sufficient
to meet demand, highlighting high levels of industry stocks
across the developed world.
PIPELINE OUTAGE
Canada is the largest oil exporter to the U.S., and
Enbridge's pipelines carry the lion's share of that crude.
Graphic: http://link.reuters.com/qyz52p )
Enbridge Inc <ENB.TO> closed its 670,000 barrel-per-day
(bpd) Line 6A, the largest of the company's major three, after
a leak was discovered near Romeoville. The duct accounts for
7-8 percent of total U.S. crude imports. []
Canada shipped 1.75 million bpd to the United States in the
week to Sept. 3, making it by far the largest foreign supplier.
Saudi Arabia, the No. 2 supplier, shipped 1.16 million bpd to
U.S. markets last week, according to data from the U.S. Energy
Information Administration.
Six weeks ago Enbridge was forced to shut down another
smaller part of its Lakehead system, which the U.S. government
has not yet allowed to resume operations following heightened
scrutiny because of BP Plc's <BP.L> Gulf of Mexico spill.
Record stockpiles in the United States have this month
depressed the price of U.S. benchmark crude relative to
European Brent <LCOc1>.
The Enbridge pipeline shutdown might help ease a glut at
Cushing, Oklahoma -- the pricing point for the main U.S. crude
oil contract -- which is chiefly supplied these days with
Canadian oil.
Brent posted its biggest premium to WTI since mid-May
earlier this week at more than $3.50 a barrel, shrinking on
Friday to just under $2.
"We don't know the timeline for when the leak is likely to
be fixed. We're likely to see more draws in Cushing than was
previously expected," Amrita Sen of Barclays Capital said.
In other markets, world stocks measured by MSCI All-Country
World Index <.MIWD00000PUS> were up 0.13 percent. The dollar
was down 0.06 percent against a basket of currencies. <.DXY>
(Additional reporting by Gene Ramos in New York, Marie-Louise
Gumuchian in London and Alejandro Barbajosa in Singapore;
Editing by David Gregorio)
