* U.S. stocks trading nearly flat
* Brent oil above $114 on supply concerns
* Dollar index near 3-1/2-month low
(Updates with US market opens, changes byline, dateline;
previous LONDON)
By Caroline Valetkevitch
NEW YORK, March 1 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks edged lower early
on Tuesday, and oil prices regained ground, fanning worries
about their effect on economic growth.
World equities, measured by the MSCI All-Country World
Index <.MIWD00000PUS>, were lower, falling 0.1 percent. It
ended February up 2.8 percent.
The U.S. dollar fell to fresh 3 1/2-month lows against
major currencies, while the 10-year U.S. Treasury note also was
lower.
U.S. stocks, which are up about 26 percent since the start
of September, slipped even as data showed U.S. factory growth
rose in February.
"If gas prices go higher that will put a damper on things,"
said Douglas Lane, president of the New York-based Douglas C.
Lane & Associates, which has about $2.2 billion in assets under
management.
"The market has been on a big upswing and there will be a
correction at some point. Maybe the oil crisis will be a reason
for that."
The Dow Jones industrial average <> was down 22.25
points, or 0.18 percent, at 12,204.09. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was down 3.65 points, or 0.28 percent, at
1,323.57. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was down 9.38
points, or 0.34 percent, at 2,772.89.
U.S. crude for delivery in April <CLc1> rose $1.68 to
$98.65 a barrel, while Brent crude <LCOc1> was up $2.37 at near
$114.18 on continued concerns about supply disruptions amid
unrest in Libya. For details, see []
Crude was still off its highs of last week, when Brent
crude traded close to $120 per barrel, its highest in more than
two years, due to concerns that political upheaval in Libya
would spread across oil-producing nations in the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia has calmed the market with extra supply.
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Graphic showing oil price shocks: http://r.reuters.com/qes28r
Calculator: Oil price impact on GDP
http://r.reuters.com/jux28r
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The upheaval in the Middle East and North Africa helped
spot gold to rise. Gold staged its largest monthly rise in
February since last August, as turmoil in the Middle East fed
investor demand for perceived safe-haven assets.
Helping to support the view that monetary tightening was
beginning to register, data out of China showed manufacturing
growth slowed in February while costs jumped. Analysts said
more tightening would probably be needed to cool inflation due
largely to rising oil and food prices. []
In Europe, the FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of leading
European shares was down 0.1 percent at 1,167.88.
The dollar index <.DXY>, which tracks its performance
against a basket of major currencies, was down 0.1 percent. It
hit a 3-1/2 month low of 76.735, before recovering slightly to
76.802.
(Additional reporting by Emelia Sithole-Matarise and
Harpreet Bhal in London)
(Editing by Theodore d'Afflisio)
