* Oil falls from record over $143 on U.S. demand concerns
* Market eyes growing tensions between Iran and Israel
* Saudi says ready to supply all customer requirements
(Updates throughout, adds settlement prices, recasts, adds
details on Reuters poll of analysts)
By Matthew Robinson
NEW YORK, June 30 (Reuters) - Oil slipped from a record
high above $143 a barrel on Monday as weak U.S. demand
countered mounting tensions between OPEC nation Iran and
Israel.
U.S. crude <CLc1> settled 21 cents lower at $140.00 a
barrel, after hitting an all-time high of $143.67 earlier.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> settled 48 cents lower at $139.83.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration revised downward
U.S. April oil demand by 863,000 barrels per day to 19.77
million bpd -- 3.9 percent below year-ago levels -- as surging
fuel costs erode demand in the world's top consumer.
The revision showed April demand was the lowest for the
month since April 2002, and came even before gasoline prices
scaled to new highs in June. []
"This revision of the U.S. oil demand for April has
certainly put pressure on crude futures. This is demand
destruction before our very eyes," said Phil Flynn of Alaron
Trading. "This is a huge revision, and it happened when (fuel)
prices were still lower, so you can expect that there could be
more future downgrades in demand data."
Earlier, crude prices rushed to a fresh high on the weaker
dollar and escalating tensions between Iran and Israel over
Tehran's nuclear program.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard said Saturday Tehran would
impose controls on shipping in the Persian Gulf and Strait of
Hormuz, if it were attacked. Roughly 40 percent of the world's
traded oil flows though the narrow waterway separating Iran
from the Arabian Peninsula. []
The U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet said on Monday the United
States and its allies would not allow Iran to hamper shipping
in the Gulf. [] Iran's foreign minister said
Sunday he did not believe Israel was in a position to attack.
Tehran's dispute with the West over its nuclear development
program has supported the 40 percent rise in oil prices this
year, as has an influx of cash from investors seeking to hedge
against inflation and the slumping U.S. dollar.
Oil prices have jumped nearly seven-fold since 2002 as part
of a broader commodities rally sparked by surging demand from
emerging economies like China and India.
Inflation in the euro zone rose to a record high of 4
percent in June, data showed Monday. []
High fuel prices have hit the economies of some consuming
nations, prompting some countries including the United States
to call on OPEC to increase output.
Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi reiterated his country's
position that oil prices were being driven mostly by
speculation and said the OPEC kingpin was prepared to supply
all the oil its customers needed. []
The heads of some of the biggest oil companies, gathered at
an oil conference in Madrid, said fundamentals, not investor
flows, were the main driver of prices. []
"This is a fundamental signal. This is not about
speculation," said Tony Hayward, chief executive of BP <BP.L>.
A Reuters poll of analysts forecast weekly government data
due out on Wednesday will show a drop in U.S. crude inventories
and a build in distillates and gasoline for the week ending
June 27. []
(Additional reporting by Gene Ramos and Robert Gibbons in New
York, Jane Merriman in London and Fayen Wong in Perth; Editing
by Christian Wiessner)
