Oil retreats on risk aversion, EIA data weighs

By Gene Ramos
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil fell on Wednesday as worries about Europe's debt problems re-emerged and data showed U.S. crude inventories soared, turning investors risk-averse.
Crude futures rose early after an Iranian nuclear scientist was killed by a car bomb, an incident that Tehran blamed on Israel, raising Middle East tensions and adding to worries of supply disruption from Iran.
Worries about European debt reasserted themselves after ratings agency Fitch urged the European Central Bank to ramp up buying of euro zone debt. By 12:20 p.m. EST (1720 GMT), ICE Brent crude for February was down 22 cents at $113.06 a barrel, after falling to a session low of $112.11. U.S. February crude was off 34 cents at $101.90 after dropping as low as $100.55.
Losses were pared on news that the biggest oil workers' union in Nigeria, Africa's largest oil producer, was putting oil platforms on red alert in preparation for shutting down production, part of protests against the removal of fuel subsidies.
U.S. crude stockpiles jumped 5.0 million barrels last week as imports soared to their highest level in 18 months, data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed.
"The EIA data was moderately bearish (but) events out of the Middle East and Europe will continue to dominate the direction of energy prices for the foreseable future," said Chris Jarvis, president of Caprosk Risk Management in Rye, New Hampshire.
(Additional reporting by Robert Gibbons and Eileen Houlihan in New York, Simon Falush in London, Seng Li Peng in Singapore; Editing by David Gregorio)