* Investors eye U.S. GDP data, seen expanding 3.3 pct
* EIA data shows surprise gasoline build
* U.S. dollar firms as high-yielders sold off
* Japan Sept oil sales likely fell 10 pct y/y (Recasts,
updates prices, adds Japan's industrial output)
By Fayen Wong
PERTH, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Oil prices steadied at above $77
a barrel on Thursday, pausing from the previous session's
decline of 2.6 percent, as investors waited for more economic
data to gauge the pace of economic recovery in the United
States.
Data this week from the U.S. has raised questions about a
sustained recovery, with consumer confidence dipping to
recessionary levels and new home sales falling unexpectedly.
Concerns over the fragile health of the U.S. economy and
weakness in energy demand have prompted oil prices to fall
about 6 percent over five out of six trading sessions, since
striking a one-year high of $82 on Oct. 21.
U.S. crude for December delivery <CLc1> slipped 6 cents to
$77.40 a barrel by 0805 GMT, after settling down $2.09 at
$77.46 on Wednesday on government data that showed a surprise
build in U.S. gasoline inventories last week.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> edged up 5 cents to $75.91.
"U.S. economic data again included some positives and
negatives but, in the context of commodity markets that have
been looking at the prospects for international economic
recovery, it was the negatives that were the surprise and
grabbed the attention of investors," said David Moore, a
commodities analyst at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
In a sign of investors' skittishness towards stocks and
other riskier assets like commodities, the VIX indicator
<.VIX>, Wall Street's favourite barometer for market sentiment,
jumped 12.4 percent on Wednesday.
Analysts said traders were likely to remain wary ahead of
the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) data due later on
Thursday.
The market is expecting the world's largest economy to
expand 3.3 percent in the third quarter, but a lower growth
figure could heighten concerns of a sluggish recovery and
prompt a further sell-off in riskier commodities.
[]
The financial crisis has forced the shutdown of factories
across the globe and slashed global energy demand, prompting
oil prices to fall from their peak of about $147 struck last
July.
Oil demand in Japan, the world's third-largest energy
consumer, looks to have declined by its widest amount in five
months in September, Reuters projections based on industry data
showed, as firm gasoline sales were not enough to offset weak
industrial demand. []
But on a brighter note, Japanese industrial output rose for
the seventh month running in September, the longest streak of
gains in more than 12 years, as global stimulus measures led
car and electronics makers to increase production.
[]
Asian shares fell on Thursday after a set of weak U.S. data
rekindled worries about global growth and prompted a shift away
from riskier assets, lifting the yen and underpinning the
dollar. []
Sales of new U.S. homes unexpectedly tumbled in September,
their first drop in six months, underscoring the hazards to an
economic recovery even as businesses appeared to be stepping up
investment. []
New single-family home sales fell 3.6 percent to a 402,000
unit annual pace from a downwardly revised 417,000 units in
August, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration data on
Wednesday showed gasoline stockpiles logged an unexpected gain
of 1.7 million barrels.
(Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
