* Sour U.S. data fans economic recovery fears
* IMF, EU halt Hungary fund review; sparks debt fears
* China seals oil port after spill; PetroChina cuts runs
* Seepage detected near blown-out BP well-US govt
(Updates China closing oil port after spill, oil prices)
By Fayen Wong
PERTH, July 19 (Reuters) - Oil prices steadied near $76 a
barrel on Monday, pausing from the previous session's decline,
as investors weighed the sharp drop in U.S. consumer sentiment
against early signs of improved underlying oil demand.
Analysts said the marginal slide in oil prices shows that
crude was receiving ample support above $74 a barrel, thanks to
bullish inventory reports that showed large drawdowns in U.S.
crude stocks over the past three weeks. []
U.S. crude for August delivery <CLc1> slipped 12 cents to
$75.89 a barrel by 0642 GMT. The contract settled down 61 cents
at $76.01 a barrel on Friday, closing the week 8 cents lower
than the previous week.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> retreated 11 cents to $75.26.
For a technical view of oil prices, see: []
"The price decline looked mild considering the 2.5 percent
slide in the Dow. The consumer sentiment report would have put
the oil longs on the back foot," said Mark Pervan, chief of
commodities research at Australia & New Zealand Bank.
"The stickier oil price move may be reflecting bullish
inventory reports over the past three weeks showing larger than
expected declines in U.S. crude supplies and a pickup in
underlying demand."
Oil prices had initially risen by as much as $2 last week,
supported by strength in U.S. corporate earnings, a fall in
U.S. crude stockpiles and an upward revision in global oil
demand forecast by the International Energy Agency.
But investors who believed the world economy is on shaky
ground got more ammunition for their arguments on Friday after
U.S. data showed consumer prices fell for the third straight
month in June while consumer sentiment dropped to a near
one-year low. []
News that the IMF and European Union has suspended a review
of Hungary's funding programme at the weekend has also ignited
fresh euro zone jitters, as the country will not have access to
remaining funds in its $25.1 billion loan package set up in
2008 until the review is concluded. []
In the euro zone, analysts at Informa Global Markets said
uncertainty over Hungary's funding programme has prompted a
steep rise in the country's funding costs ahead of Friday's
banks stress test results. []
Asian stocks fell on Monday, while the U.S. dollar index
<.DXY> rose 0.21 percent against a basket of currencies as
investors wound back on riskier assets. []
The Japanese market was shut on Monday for a holiday.
After poor economic data and an unexpected downturn in
sentiment on quarterly earnings, Wall Street will face a tough
time battling back from the latest sell-off this week, analysts
said. []
CHINA PIPELINE BLAST, BP WELL SEEPAGE
China closed the Dalian Xingang oil port in northest China,
home to the country's largest oil reserve bases, after crude
pipeline explosions spilled oil into the sea, an industry
executive said on Monday. []
State oil major PetroChina <0857.HK>, which operates two
major refineries in Dalian, has started trimming refinery
operations by several thousand tonnes per day to cope with one
week's closure of the main oil port.
In the Gulf of Mexico, engineers monitoring BP Plc's
<BP.L><BP.N> damaged well detected seepage on the ocean floor
that could mean problems with the cap that has stopped oil from
gushing into the water, the U.S. government's top oil spill
official said on Sunday. []
On the weather front, two low pressure systems, one in the
northern Gulf of Mexico and one just east of southern Nicaragua
in the Caribbean Sea, had a low 10 percent chance to become the
season's next tropical cyclone during the next 48 hours, the
U.S. National Hurricane Center forecast Friday.
[]
(Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by Ed Lane)
