Oil is falling in early morning trade while continued anxiety about Europe's financial health puts a damper on energy demand. Traders will also be looking to the release of the weekly U.S. crude inventories data later in the morning, with most expecting stockpile to have increased as the summer holiday season draws to a close. Gold is up slightly, buoyed by concerns about European sovereign debt risks which in turn have increased demand for safe haven assets including precious metals. At 0750 ET, Brent crude is down 0.7% at $77.22 a barrel, while light sweet crude is 0.3% weaker at $73.89 a barrel, and natural gas is nearly flat at $3.85 a million British thermal units. Gold is up 0.1% at $1,260.90 an ounce, while silver is up 0.6% at $20.03 an ounce, and copper is up 0.3% at $3.48 a pound. BP plc ( BP ) is up over 3% after the oil giant released findings from an internal investigation which concluded that there was no single reason for the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Instead, the company said that there were "many failures" that led to its rig's explosion, adding that it has accepted all recommendations outlined in the report and implement them worldwide. BP did, however, blame drilling contractor Transocean Ltd ( RIG ) for missing danger signs that led gas swamping on the platform. Transocean shares are up 0.4% before the bell. BP was also critical of Halliburton Co ( HAL ), which is up nearly 0.1%, for the cementing of the well. Commodity trading group Glencore International AG has bought a $200 million stake in Indonesian coal miner PT Bum Resources (BUMI). In the mining sector, UBS has increased its monthly price forecast for gold to $1,300 an ounce from $1,230 on the back of strong demand for safe haven assets in addition to increased seasonal buying woldwide. BHP Billiton Ltd ( BHP )'s bid for Potash Corp ( POT ) will only need approval fromt he Chinese government if it meets the criteria set in the country's anti-monopoly law, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

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