* Oil jumps 2.2 pct on Alaska pipeline leak, then retreats
* Short-term supply threat, longer-term regulatory risks
* Euro zone woes add pressure on world stocks []
* Iran says no need for emergency OPEC meeting
(Adds analysts, updates prices)
By Dmitry Zhdannikov and Alejandro Barbajosa
LONDON/SINGAPORE, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Oil rose over 1 percent
on Monday after a leak shut an Alaskan pipeline that carries 12
percent of U.S. crude output, but gains were capped by a
stronger dollar due to worries about Portugal's debt.
The Trans Alaska Pipeline was shut down on Saturday because
of a leak in Prudhoe Bay, forcing oil companies to cut output to
5 percent of their daily average of 630,000 barrels.
[]
The shutdown of one of the key U.S. oil arteries sent crude
prices leaping early in Asia by almost $2 to $89.98 a barrel,
although prices eased to $89.29 at 1448 GMT.
"Of course a pipeline with a magnitude like that is
supportive for crude prices. It is normal that first the market
reacts a bit too much. But then it is a question of how long the
line will be closed," said Hannes Loacker, an oil analyst at
Raiffeisen Bank International.
"It is of course a problem for North America, but it
wouldn't justify a price increase by 2 or 3 percent ... Today
most (financial) markets are facing some minor losses. So this
is like the other side of the coin," Loacker added.
Lawrence Eagles from J.P Morgan said that from an
engineering perspective, he doubted that any shutdown would last
more than two to three days.
"However, government inspectors are likely to want a more
comprehensive understanding of the cause," he said, adding that
the outage could last a week or more as a result. "One of the
clear messages from the Macondo oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
is that unplanned outage assessments will have to be increased
going forward."
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
For a list of incidents at the pipeline: []
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
Amrita Sen from Barclays said the scale of the leak seemed
small enough for the pipelines to be restarted fairly soon.
"Reserve stock levels should be plenty to meet any shortfall
at Valdez until the weekend," she added.
BULLISH POTENTIAL
Traders said that if the outage lasted longer than a week or
two, it would have the potential to be very bullish. One noted
that most of the pipeline's previous problems had been fixed
quickly, but in the post-Deepwater Horizon world, approvals to
restart could take longer after accidents.
"An extended shutdown should have a price positive impact on
Brent before (U.S. crude) WTI due to the location of the U.S.
supplies being affected," said Olivier Jakob from Petromatrix.
Gains in Brent crude <LCOc1> outpaced gains in U.S. crude as
it rose 1.84 cents to $95.14, keeping Brent's premium to WTI at
$6 or close to a seven-month high.
Iran, holder of the rotating OPEC presidency, said on Monday
it was comfortable with the rising oil price and that there was
no need for any emergency OPEC meeting. []
"While the door to $100 has no doubt opened up with OPEC
having chosen to act reactively to price rises, we do not
believe that prices are likely to average above $100
this year, or in any of the quarters," said Sen.
"Current spare capacity in OPEC, and in particular Saudi
Arabia, though eroding, is significantly higher than the levels
seen in 2008, making the process of achieving price stability an
easier one," she added.
Data from China showed the world's largest commodities
consumer imported 239.31 million tonnes of crude oil in 2010, up
17.5 percent from 2009, but the growth could slow in 2011
[].
On the foreign exchange front, the euro recovered from near
four-month lows against the dollar as worries about a Portugal
debt crisis eased slightly. The dollar index against a basket of
currencies <.DXY> was still up 0.18 percent at 1447 GMT.
Sources told Reuters on Sunday that pressure was growing on
Portugal from Germany and France to seek financial help from the
European Union and International Monetary Fund to prevent the
bloc's debt crisis spreading. []
Traders said the European Central Bank threw Portugal a
temporary lifeline by buying its bonds []
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Graphic:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT/20111001083830.jpg
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
(Editing by Jane Baird and Sue Thomas)
