Crude up on Iran nuclear program tensions

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures rose on Tuesday in choppy trading as concerns about rising geopolitical tensions over OPEC-member Iran's nuclear program bolstered oil prices.

Iran on Tuesday dismissed a new wave of sanctions, saying the West's attempts to isolate its economy would unite Iranians behind the government's nuclear program.

The United States, Britain and Canada on Monday announced new sanctions on Iran's energy and financial sectors. The United States stopped short of targeting Iran's central bank, a step that could have cut the country off from the global financial system.

France had called for new sanctions on an "unprecedented scale," proposing purchases of Iranian oil be halted and central bank assets frozen.

Tensions in Egypt and Syria also continued to keep oil investors jittery. Egyptians frustrated with military rule battled police in the streets as bloodshed jolted plans for Egypt's first free election in decades.

Oil held on to gains despite a report showing the U.S. economy grew at a slightly slower pace than previously estimated in the third quarter.

Gross domestic product grew at a 2.0 percent annual rate in the third quarter, the Commerce Department said in its second estimate on Tuesday, down from the previously estimated 2.5 percent and below economists' expectations for a 2.5 percent growth pace.

Oil traders will get the first weekly snapshot of U.S. oil inventories later on Tuesday. U.S. crude oil and distillate stocks likely fell last week while gasoline stockpiles rose, according to a Reuters survey of analysts on Monday.

The industry group American Petroleum Institute will release its oil inventory data at 4:30 p.m. EST (2130 GMT).

FUNDAMENTALS

* On the New York Mercantile Exchange, January crude rose 80 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $97.72 a barrel by 9:21 a.m. EST (1421 GMT), having traded from $96.55 to $98.49.

* The global oil market is balanced and prices are "comfortable," OPEC Secretary-General Abdullah al-Badri said.

* Iraq's Oil Minister Adbul-Kareem Luaibi said he expects OPEC to decide to cut output at its December meeting as global oil demand is likely to decline. He expects oil to continue to trade between $100 and $120, which he called a reasonable range.

* Ratings agency Standard & Poor's said on Monday the credit rating of the United States is not affected by the failure of a U.S. congressional committee to reach an agreement on debt reduction. <ID;nN1E7AK254>

MARKETS NEWS

* U.S. stock index futures briefly added to losses after the disappointing third-quarter GDP data. .N

* Gold recovered strongly as buyers from China saw value in lower prices and as panic over sovereign debt in the West subsided in the wider financial markets, lessening the need to sell gold to raise dollar funding. <GOL/>

* Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange cut gains and posted its session low after U.S. growth data was revised down, renewing concerns that a slowdown in the world's second top economy could further imperil global growth. <MET/L>

UPCOMING DATA/EVENTS

* American Petroleum Institute oil inventory data due 4:30 p.m. EST (2130 GMT).

* U.S. Energy Information Administration oil inventory data at 10:30 a.m. EST (1030 GMT) on Wednesday.

* U.S. Energy Information Administration natural gas storage data at noon EST (1700 GMT) on Wednesday.

9:21 LAST NET PCT LOW HIGH CURRENT DAY AGO

CHNG CHNG VOL VOL CLc1 97.72 0.80 0.8% 96.55 98.49 61,877 194,039 CLc2 97.78 0.79 0.8% 96.63 98.58 10,931 341,638 LCOc1 107.78 0.90 0.8% 106.62 108.50 83,020 183,497 RBc1 2.5270 0.0380 1.5% 2.4850 2.5389 3,483 35,473 RBc2 2.5326 0.0339 1.4% 2.4926 2.5465 7,101 41,641 HOc1 2.9871 -0.0072 -0.2% 2.9740 3.0124 7,265 48,111 HOc2 2.9992 -0.0051 -0.2% 2.9845 3.0230 14,360 46,909

* NYMEX crude oil for January rose 80 cents to $97.72 a barrel by 9:21 a.m. in volume of 61,877 lots.

(Reporting by Robert Gibbons; editing by Jim Marshall)