--Oil prices Down Slightly As Markets Await Bernanke Speech in Jackson Hole --Analyst Don't Expect Oil Prices To Change Significantly After Jackson Hole Meeting --Hurricane Irene Eyed As It Could Disrupt Oil Refining On U.S. East Coast By Konstantin Rozhnov Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Crude oil futures fell slightly in anticipation of a speech by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke later Friday, which is being closely watched for hints on how the government plans to boost the U.S. economy, the world's largest oil consumer. At 1027 GMT, the front-month October contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was trading down 42 cents, or 0.5%, at $84.88 a barrel. The front-month October Brent contract on London's ICE futures exchange was down 31 cents, or 0.3%, at $110.31 a barrel. Bernanke's press conference in Jackson Hole at 1400 GMT is "definitely the main economic event of the week, if not the month," SEB commodity strategist Filip Petersson said. Market participants expect some positive news to emerge at the press conference, although expectations of strong policy measures being announced have fallen in recent days, Thina Saltvedt, senior oil markets analyst at Nordea Bank Norge, said. "There might be slight fall [in oil prices] on some disappointment" if Bernanke fails to cheer up investors with the monetary steps the Feds wants to make to support economic growth, she said. Bernanke is likely to deliver a message that the Fed will be there to respond if needed, Petersson said in a note. There could be "extreme choppiness" in most markets after Bernanke's speech, "but things should close pretty much unchanged on the session, as we do not see the speech containing enough of a surprise to trigger a sharp move in either direction," MF Global said in a note. Market participants will also be paying attention to revised U.S. second-quarter GDP figures. But even if significant revision is announced, it will still be of less importance to the market than Bernanke's speech, analysts said. "[This figures] are about history, while the meeting [in Jackson Hole] is about future," Saltvedt said. Hurricane Irene, which is expected to hit the U.S. East Coast over the weekend, will also be closely watched, as it could potentially disrupt oil refining operations and distribution in the region. If it happens, crude oil and refining product prices could get some support. "Irene is a powerful hurricane hitting a region not really used to such weather events and whatever Irene has done will be an important price input when the oil markets re-open on Sunday night," Petromatrix said in a note. At 1027 GMT, the ICE's gasoil contract for September delivery was up $2.25, or 0.2%, at $944.25 a metric ton, while Nymex gasoline for September delivery was down 4 points at $2.9675 a gallon. -By Konstantin Rozhnov, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 207 842 9956; konstantin.rozhnov@dowjones.com

Source