By Eric Yep Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--U.S. benchmark oil futures were slightly higher but largely rangebound in Asia Friday as market participants weighed Iran's latest threat to disrupt oil supplies and a firmer dollar due to renewed concerns about the European debt crisis. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in March struggled to extend yesterday's gain after closing at a one-week high. The March contract traded at $99.77 a barrel at 0552 GMT, up $0.07 in the Globex electronic session. March Brent crude on London's ICE Futures exchange rose $0.16 to $110.95 a barrel. Oil prices rallied Thursday after Iran threatened an immediate halt to crude exports to the European Union in response to the EU's planned embargo of Iranian oil. However, prices fell after the chief of the International Energy Agency later said there was no need to release emergency reserves now. Iran's parliament is expected to discuss the embargo at its first open session Sunday. "As we have previously indicated, the Iran factor will continue to force the addition and subtraction of risk premium on almost a daily basis as the country attempts to buoy revenue in anticipation of some reduction in exports," consulting firm Ritterbusch and Associates said in a note. The dollar made up some of the loss it suffered Thursday following the U.S. Federal Reserve's statement that it intended to keep interest rates low for longer than expected. The ICE Dollar Index, a basket of international currencies measured against the greenback, slipped to 79.480 from 79.513 overnight. Dollar-denominated commodities like oil tend to rise when the dollar weakens because they become cheaper for holders of other currencies. "We still view weakening trends in the crude curves as a portent of lower crude values to come. Although the U.S. stock market appears solid, we still see significant downside risk to the euro capable of weighing heavily on crude prices," Ritterbusch said, adding that oil prices have few supportive cues in the market aside from the Iran risk. On Friday investors will keep an eye on Greece, which is expected to meet its private-sector creditors again to negotiate a EUR100 billion debt write-down for the country. The U.S. will also release advance fourth-quarter data on gross domestic product later Friday. Consensus expectations are for GDP to have grown by 3% in the quarter. Nymex reformulated gasoline blendstock for February--the benchmark gasoline contract--fell 12 points to $2.8454 a gallon, while February heating oil traded at $3.0585, 50 points higher. ICE gasoil for February changed hands at $949.25 a metric ton, up $4.50 from Thursday's settlement. -By Eric Yep, Dow Jones Newswires; +65 6415 4063; eric.yep@dowjones.com

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