Oil takes pause after two-day rise to near record

SINGAPORE, July 20 (Reuters) Oil prices eased slightly on Friday after two days of solid gains, buoyed by concerns that unrelenting economic growth will strain supplies already thinned by U.S. refinery trip-ups and African export disruptions.

London Brent crude for September slipped 17 cents to .50 a barrel by 0246 GMT, one dollar below its all-time record high of .65 touched last August.

Brent has rallied more than SINGAPORE, July 20 (Reuters) Oil prices eased slightly on Friday after two days of solid gains, buoyed by concerns that unrelenting economic growth will strain supplies already thinned by U.S. refinery trip-ups and African export disruptions.

London Brent crude for September slipped 17 cents to $77.50 a barrel by 0246 GMT, one dollar below its all-time record high of $78.65 touched last August.

Brent has rallied more than $2 in the two days following U.S. government data on Wednesday showing a fall in fuel stocks.

U.S. light crude for August delivery which expires later on Friday, was down 12 cents at $75.80 a barrel, after having settled 87 cents higher at $75.92 a barrel on Thursday.

''Oil demand seems to be robust. There is a feeling that the market will become tighter and there is concern about prompt supplies,'' said Tony Nunan, risk management executive at Tokyo-based Mitsubishi.

Economic growth in China, the world's second-largest consumer, accelerated to 11.9 percent in the second quarter, a 11-1/2-year high, and crude imports for June rose 20 percent from a year ago.

Other Asian economies are also proving resilient to surging energy prices. Crude imports by South Korea, the world's fourth-largest buyer, rose 3.8 percent from a year ago in June.

Steadily rising demand in the United States, coupled with a summer of unplanned refinery hiccups, has strained inventories in the world's biggest oil user in the midst of the summer season.

Gasoline stocks fell by a hefty 2.3 million barrels in the week ended July 13, while crude stocks, still near nine-year highs, fell for the second week in a row.

Following a surge in speculative buying since late June, the impact of even modest supply disruptions has been magnified.

Oil prices climbed on Thursday after France's Total on Thursday declared force majeure on exports of its 220,000 barrel per day Dalia field, even though exports were expected to resume within the next day or two.

Almost 550,000 bpd, or 18 percent of the country's oil capacity remain shut down in neighbouring Nigeria.

OPEC has, meanwhile, shown no sign of relaxing its output curbs, in place since last November, fearful of allowing already lofty crude inventories to build further.

''OPEC is holding up this year. They opened up the taps last year and the result was a large build in inventories by the end of the summer. They will be very conservative this year,'' Nunan said.

REUTERS AM VV0923 in the two days following U.S. government data on Wednesday showing a fall in fuel stocks.

U.S. light crude for August delivery which expires later on Friday, was down 12 cents at .80 a barrel, after having settled 87 cents higher at .92 a barrel on Thursday.

''Oil demand seems to be robust. There is a feeling that the market will become tighter and there is concern about prompt supplies,'' said Tony Nunan, risk management executive at Tokyo-based Mitsubishi.

Economic growth in China, the world's second-largest consumer, accelerated to 11.9 percent in the second quarter, a 11-1/2-year high, and crude imports for June rose 20 percent from a year ago.

Other Asian economies are also proving resilient to surging energy prices. Crude imports by South Korea, the world's fourth-largest buyer, rose 3.8 percent from a year ago in June.

Steadily rising demand in the United States, coupled with a summer of unplanned refinery hiccups, has strained inventories in the world's biggest oil user in the midst of the summer season.

Gasoline stocks fell by a hefty 2.3 million barrels in the week ended July 13, while crude stocks, still near nine-year highs, fell for the second week in a row.

Following a surge in speculative buying since late June, the impact of even modest supply disruptions has been magnified.

Oil prices climbed on Thursday after France's Total on Thursday declared force majeure on exports of its 220,000 barrel per day Dalia field, even though exports were expected to resume within the next day or two.

Almost 550,000 bpd, or 18 percent of the country's oil capacity remain shut down in neighbouring Nigeria.

OPEC has, meanwhile, shown no sign of relaxing its output curbs, in place since last November, fearful of allowing already lofty crude inventories to build further.

''OPEC is holding up this year. They opened up the taps last year and the result was a large build in inventories by the end of the summer. They will be very conservative this year,'' Nunan said.

REUTERS AM VV0923