Oil prices dipped on Tuesday as Opec's promise to keep pumping at near full capacity triggered profit taking from record highs struck late last week.
But traders said losses would be limited by persistent concern over key oil producer Iran's nuclear programme and disruptions in Nigerian supply, as well as strong demand from China. US June light crude futures were trading 10 cents lower at $73.23 a barrel in electronic trading.
On Monday in New York, prices fell $1.84, sliding from a $75.35 record high reached on Friday, as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries kept its production ceiling of 28 million barrels per day unchanged at talks by ministers in Doha on Monday.
But US crude trimmed losses after touching $72.85 on Tuesday as official customs data showed that China's crude import rose 10.9 percent in March from a year. London Brent crude was unchanged at $73.00 a barrel, after dropping to $72.66 on Tuesday. "We saw large profit taking from record highs, but the market is retreating now, (though) it is likely to stay at high levels around $70," said Hiroyuki Katakana, director of commodities business at Barclays in Tokyo.
"Risks that have been supporting the market remain unresolved, and China's strong demand will have impact on the market fundamentals." Opec ministers said on Monday that geo-political tensions in Iran, Nigeria and other key oil-producing nations have added as much as $15 to the price of oil and said the group, the source of a third of global oil, was powerless to pull down high oil prices.
Iranian Oil Minister Kazoo Vizier sought to calm the market at the weekend by reiterating that the oil weapon was off the table in its dispute with the West, which fears Tehran wants to build an atomic bomb. Iran's foreign ministry said its decision to enrich uranium was irreversible, despite the threat of sanctions or military action.
Analysts forecast US government weekly data on Wednesday will show a drop in gasoline stocks in the United States for the eighth consecutive week as demand rose, while refineries continued to drain their tanks of MTBE-laced gasoline to make way for product with ethanol.
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