* Dollar stronger vs euro, currency basket, pressures oil
* OPEC signals no output policy change likely at meeting
* Coming Up: Fed meeting minutes from Sept. 21; 2 p.m. EDT
(Recasts, updates prices, market activity, changes byline and
moves dateline from LONDON)
By Robert Gibbons
NEW YORK, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Oil prices slipped for a
second day on Tuesday as OPEC signaled it will keep output
targets steady when the group meets this week and with the
stronger dollar also providing price pressure for oil.
Strikes affecting French ports and eight of the country's
12 oil refineries cut fuel output and pushed up oil products
prices, helping to limit crude oil's price slide.
Trading was choppy in the oil and equities markets ahead of
the release of minutes from the most recent Federal Reserve
policy meeting.
U.S. crude for November <CLc1> delivery fell 49 cents, or
0.6 percent, to $81.72 per barrel by 12:31 a.m. EDT (1631 GMT),
having traded from $80.88 to $82.33. In London, ICE Brent
November crude <LCOc1> fell 32 cents, or 0.38 percent, to
$83.40 a barrel.
The U.S. dollar seesawed near flat against the euro after
strengthening earlier on a short-covering bounce as investors
awaited the Fed minutes for clues on the central bank's stance
toward purchasing more assets to stimulate the economy. []
The dollar index <.DXY> strengthened.
"The stronger dollar is weighing on crude prices," said
Stephen Schork, president at the Schork Group in Villanova,
Pennsylvania.
A stronger dollar renders dollar-denominated commodities
more expensive for buyers using other currencies and
strengthens the value of greenbacks paid producers.
The minutes of the Fed's meeting on Sept. 21 will be
examined for indications on the likely extent of a second round
of quantitative easing, commonly referred to as QE2, although
many analysts said the oil market had already priced this in.
"We believe the actual onset of QE2 will further lift oil
prices," Michael Lo from Nomura Global Equity Research said in
a note. "However, given the different starting points for oil
prices and economics between QE1 and QE2, we believe the impact
of QE2 will be less pronounced."
OPEC MEETS THURSDAY
Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said he was happy
with the oil market as he arrived in Vienna on Monday for
Thursday's meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries, the first in seven months.
He described crude prices between $70 and $80 as "ideal."
[]
On Tuesday, a senior Gulf OPEC delegate told Reuters that
oil prices slightly above $80 a barrel were not a threat to the
world economy, although he declined to say at what point the
oil price could affect recovery. []
OPEC has had the same official production ceiling since
December 2008, but compliance with production targets has
slipped to 56.5 percent, according to Reuters calculations.
The group said in its monthly report there was a broad
consensus that oil prices around their current range have
helped support economic recovery and promote industry
investment. [] []
FRENCH STRIKES
French oil refineries cut output as a nationwide strike
further choked supplies. Workers at major ports and eight out
of 12 French refineries were on strike. []
A spokesman for French oil-sector lobby UFIP said that
French fuel stations could face shortages in just over a week,
if an oil port strike continues. []
A Reuters poll on Monday yielded a forecast for U.S. crude
stockpiles to be up for a second straight week, adding 1.3
million barrels in the week to Oct. 8 due to higher imports.
[]
Industry group the American Petroleum Institute will issue
its oil inventory report on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. EDT (2030
GMT), delayed a day by Monday's U.S. Columbus Day holiday.
The government's report from the U.S. Energy Information
Administration is due on Thursday at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT),
also delayed a day by the holiday.
(Additional reporting by Zaida Espana and Joe Brock in London
and Alejandro Barbajosa in Singapore; Editing by Walter
Bagley)
