NYMEX-Crude ends down despite storm threat to GOM...

U.S. crude oil futures ended lower on Friday, dragged down by front-month gasoline and heating oil futures which fell before expiring at the close.

Some traders also saw the stronger dollar fueling some selling, despite worries over storm Gustav which was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane after the market closed and forecast to hit energy operations in the Gulf of Mexico early next week.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, October crude CLV8 ended down 13 cents, or 0.11 percent, at $115.46 a barrel, after trading from $115 to $118.76.

Technical resistance was at $122 with support at $110.

"The dollar is up and so we're seeing prices of crude move down from the highs," said Tom Knight, trader, Truman Arnold, in Texarkana, Texas.

"Remember that in 2005, the market sold off hard before Katrina's arrival and then rallied again when it hit," he added.

The dollar rallied against a currency basket and is on track for its best monthly performance since October 1992. [USD/]

In London, October Brent LCOV8 ended 12 cents, or 0.1 percent, lower at $114.05 a barrel, trading from $113.50 to $116.75.

NYMEX September RBOB RBU8 settled down 1.15 cents, or 0.38 percent, at $3.0099 a gallon, trading from $2.9608 to $3.0795.

September heating oil HOU8 edged down 0.07 cent, or 0.02 percent, at $3.1819 a gallon, trading from $3.1580 to $3.2775.

Gustav strengthened back into a hurricane on Friday, with maximum winds near 75 miles per hour (121) kph), the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory.

The NHC expects Gustav to be a "large, powerful hurricane as it approaches the northern Gulf Coast, likely on Tuesday.

As of Friday, the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's deadly strike on New Orleans, Gulf of Mexico operators had shut shut 6.62 percent of U.S. Gulf crude oil output and 1.84 percent of natural gas.

Some analysts noted that while damage to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast may develop due to the storm, the current rate of refinery utilization is still low and refineries in other areas may cover up for lost production, thus tempering the price rally spawned by storm worries.

"Let's say some refineries incur some major damage, there is a possibility that some other facilities can pick up the slack," said Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch & Associates.

Traders were also tracking Tropical Storm Hanna in the Atlantic, which is forecast to hit Florica but could veer into key energy-production areas in the Gulf.

The Louisiana Offshore Oil Port said it planned to stop offloading oil tankers on Saturday afternoon.

Chevron Corp and BP Plc said they were reducing oil production in the Gulf due to Gustav.

Shell Oil Co. said its 370,000 barrels per day of oil and gas liquids production in the area would be shut by Saturday as it withdraws 1,300 workers.

Meanwhile, Russia's energy minister and a top oil company denied they were preparing to cut oil flows to Europe in response to threatened sanctions.