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Oil see-saws in Asian trade

Singapore - Oil was mixed in Asian trade on Tuesday amid thin trading volumes with Middle East geopolitical tensions seen supporting prices in the long-term, analysts said.

In afternoon trade, New York's main contract, light sweet crude for February delivery, was three cents lower at $99.65 a barrel from Friday's close and Brent North Sea crude for February delivery advanced 15 cents to $108.11.

Crude markets were closed Monday.

Underlying concerns over tensions between Iran and the West will likely underpin crude prices despite ongoing worries about the weak global economy, analysts said.

"Ever present geo-political fears are likely to continue to buoy the market," analysts from National Australia Bank said in a recent commentary.

"Threats of an oil embargo being placed on Iran, Opec's second largest producer, represent significant upside risk to prices."

The United States and European powers have sought to step up global pressure on Iran after the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, came its closest yet to accusing Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons.

Tehran says its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes.

Analysts have said any heightened tensions may affect oil supplies from Iran which usually pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route in the Gulf through which more than a third of the world's ship-borne oil passes.

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