UPDATE 6-Oil hits 13-month low on recession concerns

                                
 * Recession, demand worries weigh
                                
 * OPEC cuts world demand forecasts
                                
 * U.S. weekly oil stocks seen higher
 (Updates throughout, changes dateline from LONDON)
                                
 NEW YORK, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Oil dropped nearly $3 on
Wednesday, touching 13-month lows on expectations that the
deepening economic slowdown will cut into already weakening
demand.
                                
 Investors scurried to safe-havens and global stock prices
fell sharply as concerns over a potential global recession
wiped away optimism seen earlier this week over governments'
steps to avert a financial meltdown. [nN15306835]
                                
 U.S crude <CLc1> fell $2.87 a barrel to $75.76 by 12:41
p.m. EDT (1641 GMT), after hitting $74.62, the lowest since
September 2007 and down nearly 50 percent since hitting a
record over $147 in July.
                                
 London Brent crude <LCOc1> traded down $3.20 to $71.33 a
barrel.
                                
 European leaders pressed for an overhaul of global
financial structures, building on trillion-dollar bank bailouts
announced this week. [nSP360381]
                                
 U.S. retailers suffered their biggest monthly drop in sales
in more than three years in September, adding to concerns of a
potential recession in the world's top consumer. [nN15304299]
                                
 Slumping demand in the United States and other developed
ecnomies, as well as a flight of investors out of oil and into
safer havens, has sent oil tumbling from July's record.
                                
 "The fall in crude futures prices today reflects movement
in the stock market, which mirrors fears about a recession that
will cut into demand for crude oil," said Joe Possillico,
broker for MF Global in New York City.
                                
 Analysts have scaled back global demand growth estimates,
with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
cutting its forecasts for world demand for crude next year in
its lastest monthly report. [nWLB2749]
                                
 "Even if governments are successful in calming equity
markets and unfreezing credit markets in the near future, the
fallout on the real economy from financial market headwinds is
expected to be considerable," the producer group said.
                                
 OPEC is due to hold an emergency meeting in Vienna next
month to review the impact of the global financial crisis on
the oil market.
                                
 JP Morgan cut its forecast for average oil prices next year
to $74.75 a barrel, citing the weak economic outlook.
                                
 "The oil market is caught in the wake of four tsunamis,"
the U.S. bank said. "A global recession, tighter credit,
increased refining capacity and rising non-OPEC supplies."
                                
 Some support came as Hess Corp <HES.N> began shutting units
at its Hovensa refining joint venture in the U.S. Virgin
Islands ahead of Hurricane Omar. [nN15393041]
                                
 The storm briefly shut Venezuela's Puerto La Cruz refinery,
but operations were restored on Wednesday. [nN15300808]
                                
 Traders will scrutinize weekly U.S. inventory data on
Thursday for indications on U.S. oil demand. Analysts in a
Reuters poll expect increases in crude and oil product
products.
                                
 The data was forecast to show a 1.9 million barrel build in
crude stocks, a 600,000 barrel build in distillates and a 2.9
million barrel rise in gasoline inventories last week. [EIA/S]
 (Reporting by Matthew Robinson, Gene Ramos, and Robert gibbons
in New York, Ikuko Kao and Jane Merriman in London;  Chua
Baizhen in Singapore; Editing by David Gregorio)