-- Oil futures down on euro zone worries, weaker-than-expected Japan data -- Italian bond auction failed to boost oil futures market -- U.S. crude stocks survey in focus later Wednesday By Konstantin Rozhnov Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Crude-oil futures were down Wednesday in thin trade amid lower risk appetite, as persistent worries over Europe's sovereign debt crisis and weaker-than-expected household spending and retail sales numbers from Japan pushed futures lower. At 1151 GMT, the front-month February Brent contract on London's ICE futures exchange was down $1.00, or 0.9%, at $108.27 a barrel. The front-month February contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was trading down 43 cents, or 0.4%, at $100.91 a barrel. Futures failed to strengthen even after a new Italian bond auction was well received, with yields falling sharply from the last auction held in November. Italy is the third-largest economy in the euro zone. Focus is strong Wednesday on macro-economic news, with thin trading volumes also contributing to higher volatility in the market, said Thina Saltvedt, senior oil market analyst and Nordea Bank Norge. With no major U.S. economic data due, market participants are likely to pay close attention to the American Petroleum Institute's weekly inventory data survey, due 2130 GMT. The industry body publishes its figures a day later than usual, with official data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration due Thursday. Five analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires expect U.S. commercial crude stocks to have fallen by 2.9 million barrels for the week ended Dec.23. A fresh drop in U.S. crude inventories may further narrow the Brent/WTI spread. The spread has already narrowed to $7.39 a barrel, "mainly on the back of low stock levels at the Cushing delivery point and the upcoming reversal of the Seaway pipeline," JBC Energy said in a note. "With geopolitics driving oil prices, it is a little surprising that WTI continues to gain on Brent as the latter is more sensitive to happenings on the wider international stage," it said. Meanwhile worries that Iran may close the Strait of Hormuz, which handles more than a third of the world's ocean-borne oil, have eased slightly, analysts said. The worries pushed oil futures higher Tuesday. "Shutting down the Strait...is the last bullet that Iran has and therefore we have to express some doubt that they would do this and at the same time lose their support from China and Russia," said Olivier Jakob, managing director of Swiss consultancy Petromatrix. At 1151 GMT, the ICE's gasoil contract for January delivery was down $1.00, or 0.1% at $923.50 a metric ton, while Nymex gasoline for January delivery was 238 points, or 0.9%, lower at $2.6650 a gallon. -By Konstantin Rozhnov, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 207 842 9956; konstantin.rozhnov@dowjones.com

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