* US crude hits falls from highest level since Sept. 2008
* Silver's turn lower bolsters dollar, pressures oil
* Middle East, Nigeria unrest remain supportive to oil
* Coming up: API oil data at 4:30 p.m. EDT Tuesday
(Recasts, updates with market activity to settlement)
By Robert Gibbons
NEW YORK, April 25 (Reuters) - Oil prices slipped on Monday
in thin, choppy trade as a sell-off in silver from near record
highs lifted the dollar off its lows, prompting a bout of
profit taking in crude.
Silver surged as much as 8 percent in record volumes for
U.S. futures before pulling back sharply when a failure to
pierce the all time high from 1980 unleashed a wave of
technical selling. []
Silver's retreat helped trigger profit taking for oil. U.S.
crude had hit the highest level since Sept. 2008 on inflation
fears, a weaker dollar and as investors eyed the conflict in
Libya and violence in Yemen, Syria and Nigeria.
The dollar index <.DXY>, measuring the greenback against a
basket of currencies, bounced into positive territory after
silver turned back.
Brent crude for June <LCOc1> fell 33 cents to settle at
$123.66 a barrel, after reaching $124.75.
U.S. crude <CLc1> for June dipped 1 cent to settle at
$112.28, retreating from an early $113.48 peak, the highest
intraday price since September 2008, but bouncing off a low of
$111.08.
"It looks like we're seeing some technical selling after
touching -- but failing to really break above -- the previous
high, with some maybe seeing the risk of a double-top," said
Andy Lebow, broker at MF Global in New York.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Double top for U.S. oil?:
http://link.reuters.com/baq29r
For a 24-hour technical outlook on U.S. oil:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT1/20112504084605.jpg
For a 24-hour technical outlook on Brent oil:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT1/20112504090558.jpg
For stories on Libya & Middle East crisis: []
For a TAKE-A-LOOK on Middle East, N Africa:[]
For an analysis on unrest in Yemen: []
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
U.S. oil's intraday peak eclipsed the 2011 peak from April
11 by just 2 cents.
Trading volumes were damped by the Easter Monday holiday in
Europe, with volumes for Brent and U.S. crude on track for the
lowest level since late December, according to Reuters data.
EYES ON THE FED
The market was also awaiting the U.S.. Federal Reserve's
two-day policy meeting this week, including a post-meeting news
conference by Chairman Ben Bernanke scheduled for Wednesday.
The Fed is expected to stick to its plan to complete its
$600 billion bond-buying program in June, and unlikely to rush
to tighten policy given an uncertain economic outlook.
[]
Oil prices have seesawed in recent weeks, buoyed by
geopolitical supply concerns and dollar weakness but pressured
by worries that oil demand will falter due to high prices.
U.S. gasoline futures <RBc1> also lent some support on
Monday, settling at their highest level since July 2008 for a
second straight session ahead of the summer driving season.
"A strong gasoline market is reemerging as a major
supportive price prop to the complex," Jim Ritterbusch,
president at Ritterbusch & Associates in Galena, Illinois, said
in a note.
SUPPLY THREATS REMAIN
Threats to oil supply in Africa and the Middle East helped
boost crude early. Libya's conflict continued as NATO forces
flattened a building in Muammar Gaddafi's compound.
Syria sent troops and tanks to quell protests, security
forces in Yemen fired on protesters and more than 500 people
were killed in post-election violence in Nigeria.
[] [] []
[]
OPEC has signaled that members with spare capacity are
ready to pump above agreed limits if needed. But despite
Libya's civil war and other potential supply threats, Gulf
delegates told Reuters the group is unlikely to formally change
output targets at a June meeting. []
(Additional reporting by Gene Ramos and David Sheppard in New
York, Barbara Lewis in London and Florence Tan and Manash
Goswami in Singapore; Editing by David Gregorio)
