By Ga-Woon Philip Vahn Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--Crude-oil futures fell in Asia Tuesday, as profit-taking continued amid renewed jitters over Europe's debt crisis, while weak Chinese manufacturing figures dented Asia's demand outlook. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in December traded at $92.15 a barrel at 0701 GMT, down $1.04 in the Globex electronic session. December Brent crude on London's ICE Futures exchange fell $0.97 to $108.59 a barrel. Oil traders took their cues from weaker Asian equities and the euro's decline against the greenback, as doubts increased about how Europe's bailout plan will be implemented. Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou Monday called for a popular referendum on the European Union aid-and-debt deal, raising some doubts about whether the deal is on course for approval "Support is there as we head into the winter season, but European debt issues continue to dominate investor sentiment," said a sales trader at S-Oil Corp. in Hong Kong. Meanwhile, China's official Purchasing Managers Index fell to 50.4 in October from 51.2 in September, lower than the 51.7 median forecast of nine economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires. A reading above 50 indicates an expansion in manufacturing activity, whereas a reading below points to a contraction. The lower-than-expected number prompted investors to reassess their positions. "Some players, though not many, are actually taking fresh short positions because a slowdown in China's manufacturing activity implies that Asia is by no means safe from euro-zone debt troubles and a U.S. economic slowdown," the S-Oil trader said. Market participants said crude prices may consolidate in the near term in the face of a flurry of economic data and key central bank meetings in the coming days, starting with a meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest-rate-setting body, which is always fodder for market talk about whether a third round of quantitative easing, or QE3, will be unveiled. "Traders will be talking about the prospects for a full-blooded QE3 when the Federal Open Market Committee meets Tuesday and Wednesday, with other central banks [notably the ECB] meeting this week, as well. Then, on Friday, we get the monthly Labor Department employment statistics," said Cameron Hanover in a note. Nymex reformulated gasoline blendstock for December--the benchmark gasoline contract--fell 158 points to $2.5899 a gallon, while December heating oil traded at $3.0367, 216 points lower. ICE gasoil for November changed hands at $951.50 a metric ton, up $1.00 from Monday's settlement. -By Ga-Woon Philip Vahn, Dow Jones Newswires; +65-64154149; philip.vahn@dowjones.com

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