KEY POINTS:
Oil eased back a little overnight, after earlier closing in on the US$100 milestone in response to a new slump in the dollar.
Supply worries ahead of the impending North American winter, when demand is high, and ongoing tensions in the Middle East, have kept oil prices high.
US light crude surged to a record US$99.29 early in the session but then edged off this peak to stand at US$97.53, down 50 cents, at 1623 GMT.
London Brent crude was down 24 cents at US$95.25.
US crude oil inventories fell by a surprise 1.1 million barrels last week, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration. Analysts had predicted a rise of 600,000 barrels.
But crude stocks rose at the key US delivery point at Cushing, Oklahoma, which helped to depress prices.
- REUTERS
