By Carla Mozee and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch LONDON (MarketWatch) — Crude-oil futures fell on Tuesday, pressured by a strengthened U.S. dollar, but trimmed losses during European trading hours on reports missiles were detected over the Mediterranean Sea. October crude oil futures CLV3 -0.41% fell 32 cents, or 0.3%, to $107.30 a barrel. Floor trading on the New York Stock Exchange will resume later Tuesday following Monday’s Labor Day holiday. October Brent crude UK:LCOV3 +0.65% rose 75 cents, or 0.7%, to $115.10 a barrel. The crude-oil contract traded below $107 earlier in the day, but started trimming gains after Russian news agency RIA said Russia’s defense ministry had detected two ballistic �objects� in the Mediterranean Sea, according to Reuters. The objects were fired from the central part of the sea toward the eastern Mediterranean, but there were no reports of strikes, with the missiles thought to have fallen into the sea. The Russian Embassy in Syria said there were no signs of an attack or explosions in Damascus, according to reports. Additionally, a U.S. official said no American ships or planes were involved in the suspected missile launch, CBS News reported. The jitters over signs of missiles in the region come amid heightened fears the U.S. could launch a military intervention in Syria after allegations that the country’s government used chemical weapons against civilians. The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee is expected to hold hearings later Tuesday and Wednesday on President Barack Obama’s proposed military strikes against Syria. Obama is seeking congressional approval for limited military action, but some conservative and most liberal members in the U.S. House of Representatives have already raised questions about potential action in Syria. Concerns about a strike against Syria recently helped push Nymex October crude futures above $110 a barrel, to mark their highest settlement since May 2011. But futures have since pulled back as risks of an imminent strike against Syria have decelerated. On Tuesday, oil futures felt the weight of a stronger greenback following data on Monday that showed growth in the euro zone’s manufacturing sector in August, with expansion picking up pace in Germany while it resumed in Spain. Markit’s euro-zone purchasing managers’ index for manufacturing rose to 51.4 from 50.3 in July. A reading above 50 indicates month-to-month growth. Read: We’re calling off Europe’s debt crisis after strong PMIs, says Danske Bank The data dovetailed with HSBC’s report of manufacturing growth in China last month, with a final reading of that PMI coming in at 50.1. The Chinese government’s manufacturing PMI, issued separately over the weekend, also rose. The ICE dollar index DXY +0.07% , which tracks the U.S. currency against six rivals, extended its gains from Monday, rising to 82.321 from 82.118. U.S. manufacturing data will be released later Tuesday. An upswing in the global economy tends to bolster prospects for energy demand. But gains in the dollar on the back of improving data usually push prices for oil and other dollar-denominated commodities lower by making them more expensive to holders of other currencies. “However, supply concerns amidst prospects of U.S. military action on Syria gave some support to oil prices and limited the downside,� analysts at ICICI Bank wrote in a Tuesday report. This week, the market will watch for weekly inventory figures from the U.S. Department of Energy, the analysts said. Elsewhere in the energy markets Tuesday, October gasoline futures RBV3 -1.48% moved 0.1% lower to $2.89 a gallon. October heating oil HOV3 -1.16% rose two pennies, or 0.5%, to $3.15 a gallon. October natural gas futures NGV13 +0.97% gained 9 cents, or 2.5%, to $3.78 per million British thermal units. Carla Mozee is a reporter for MarketWatch, based in Los Angeles. Follow her on Twitter @MWMozee. Sara Sjolin is a MarketWatch reporter based in London. Follow her on Twitter @sarasjolin.

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