* Saudi Arabia keeps August supplies steady
* IMF says global economy may be recovering
* Crude briefly dips below $60, lowest since May
(Updates throughout, adds byline)
By Matthew Robinson
NEW YORK, July 9 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose slightly on
Thursday as talk of refinery shutdowns spurred stirred gasoline
supply concerns, ending a six-day slide.
U.S. crude <CLc1> settled up 27 cents at $60.41 a barrel
after briefly dipping below $60 to the lowest level since
mid-May. Crude had fallen from $71 in the previous six
sessions.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> gained 67 cents to settle at
$61.10 a barrel.
U.S. RBOB futures rose 3.05 cents, or 1.87 percent, to
settle at $1.6638 a gallon after Valero Energy Corp <VLO.N>
said it had begun shutting its Aruba refinery due to poor
economics. []
In addition, Royal Dutch Shell Plc <RDSa.L> said it is
conducting a strategic review of its Montreal East refinery in
Canada, which may lead to a closure or sale as the industry
struggles with weak profit margins. []
"I think there was some bargain hunting on the gasoline
market," Tim Evans, energy analyst for Citi Futures
Perspective, in New York.
"The Valero report that they were ramping down production
at the Aruba refinery and Shell's announcement that it was
reviewing their East Montreal refinery makes gasoline supplies
seem a little less secure."
The summer gasoline season typically peaks during the July
4 Independence Day holiday, although U.S. weekly inventory data
released on Wednesday showed a steeper-than-expected build in
gasoline stocks. [] The gains helped push gasoline down
5.74 percent on Wednesday.
Global oil demand has been battered by the recession,
leading to fuel inventory build that have weighed on markets.
U.S. inventories of distillates, which include diesel fuel
used for transporting goods, hit a near 25-year high last week
due to low demand, according to the U.S. weekly government
statistics.
Fuel stocks held by the two top oil firms in No. 2 consumer
China also rose moderately in June for the second month in a
row due to high refinery runs and tepid consumption.
[]
Optimism an economic turnaround could boost flagging global
oil demand lifted crude off lows below $33 a barrel hit in
December to over $70 a barrel last month, before weak
fundamentals have begun to weigh.
"I think what's happened is that reality has come back into
the picture," oil historian and analyst Daniel Yergin told
Reuters in an interview.
"What we've seen the last week or two is a recognition that
this is going to be a longer road and a more difficult
recovery. I guess we'd say that supply and demand have walked
back into the stage again."
U.S. data showed the number of U.S. workers filing new
claims for jobless benefits fell to the lowest level since
January, but the seasonally adjusted data was distorted by an
unusual pattern of layoffs in the automotive industry.
[]
The yen and the U.S. dollar, which have seen support this
week from risk aversion, fell following the decline in U.S.
jobs claims, lending some support to commodities denominated in
the greenback. []
U.S. stock markets were mixed []
Saudi Arabia was expected to maintain supply levels to
customers in August, although two big refiners would receive
significantly less crude, trade sources, []
The world's top exporter has throttled back on crude
shipments as part of a series of production cutback agreed by
OPEC last year to help support oil prices.
(Reporting by Matthew Robinson and Gene Ramos in New York;
David Sheppard in London; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
