* Oil steadies above $43 on expectations of output cuts * Gold slips after 4 pct rally, base metals down * Investors await U.S. weekly jobless claims * Tokyo rubber falls, U.S. grains await USDA report By Lewa Pardomuan SINGAPORE, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Oil steadied above $43 a barrel on Thursday after rising more than 3 percent on expectations of output cuts, which could also boost gold's safe-haven appeal, but concerns of slowing Chinese demand battered industrial metals. Uncertainty over a U.S. auto bailout package triggered selling in Tokyo rubber futures, and investors also awaited the release of U.S. weekly jobless claims later in the day, which could erase gains in oil if it unveils bad numbers. "It will be premature to say that the oil price has bottomed, just given the volatility and the fact there's potentially more bad economic news and so on to come," said David Moore, commodities strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. "I don't think you could say that for sure," he said. Oil added 21 cents to $43.73 a barrel after rising to $1.45 to settle at $43.52, on signs that Saudi Arabia has cut January supplies ahead of next week's OPEC meeting. [O/R] The Reuters-Jefferies CRB Index <.CRB>, a global commodities benchmark, jumped around 3 percent on Wednesday, partly driven by gains in oil. OPEC may agree more output cuts to keep oil off four-year lows struck last week, as it battles falling demand likely to be underlined in a monthly report from the International Energy Agency due later on Thursday. But indicators on the health of the U.S. economy, such as first-time claims for jobless benefits for the week ended Dec. 6, could also make grim reading for Wall Street and imply a further weakening in demand from the world's top oil consumer. Economists in a Reuters poll forecast a total of 525,000 new filings compared with 509,000 in the prior week. Gold fell almost 1 percent to around $800 on weaker equities and profit taking, having posted its biggest daily percentage gains in three weeks in the previous session, but dealers said cuts in oil output could spur safe-haven buying. Fears of rising energy costs helped propel gold to a record of $1,030.80 in March before it slipped after oil changed course, and recently due to a sell-off in equities, which forced investors to sell bullion to cover margin calls. Base metals pared Wednesday's sharp gains following China's poor economic data, with London Metal Exchange copper falling $60 to $3,245 a tonne and Shanghai futures 250 yuan to 25,050 yuan. [MET/L] "The signs of economic slowing in China are becoming more visible," said Barclays Capital analyst Yingxi Yu. "We don't think a rally in metals can be sustained in the near term and even though we are seeing a rapid response from producers, it's hard to see prices recover on a sustained basis for the next three to six months." China's annual consumer price inflation saw its seventh consecutive monthly drop to a 22-month low of 2.4 percent in November from 4.0 percent in October, as economic growth slows. [nPEK97069] News of more production cuts had little effect on prices. Rio Tinto , which announced on Wednesday plans to cut its workforce by 13 percent, slash capital expenditure and put more assets up for sale to repay debt, said it will cut aluminium output in France. [nLA738279] In agriculture products, Tokyo's most active rubber contract, currently May 2009 , dropped as much as 4.5 percent to 107 yen ($1.16 a kg) as the outcome of a plan to rescue ailing U.S. car makers remained uncertain, and ahead of an industry meeting in Indonesia. [RUB/AS] The House of Representatives approved bailout legislation on Wednesday that would force U.S. automakers to restructure or fail, sending the measure to the Senate where prospects for passage are uncertain. [ID:nN09294627] The International Rubber Consortium, which groups top producers Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, is expected to call for a concerted production cut and a temporary export ban at a three-day meeting that begins on Thursday. [ID:nJAK380467] U.S. grains and soybeans barely moved ahead of the United States Department of Agriculture's monthly report on global agricultural supply and demand due to be released later on Thursday. [GRA/] ($1=92.44 yen) (Additional reporting by Jennifer Tan and Nick Trevethan in SINGAPORE, Bruce Hextall in SYDNEY and Miho Yoshikawa in TOKYO; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

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