Oil Drops As Ample Supply Overtakes Demand

NEW YORK, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Crude oil prices fell on Friday on pressure from weak demand, ample supplies and a strong dollar.

Taking what traders called a "wild ride," U.S. crude prices fell in the morning but reversed course to hold higher for most of the afternoon, only to fall again by settlement.

Analysts said prices seemed to have found temporary support above $92 a barrel, after major sell-offs a day earlier pushed them to a 16-month low.

"We've seen a lot of selling pressure lately and concerns of a lot of oil on hand to meet demand," said Gene McGillian, an analyst at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. "I'm not sure if we've found our bottom yet, but we've wiped out more than $16 in the last few months and a lot of the fears have been priced in for now."

Some traders cited expectations that U.S. crude stocks will rise in coming weeks during refinery maintenance season. Last week, U.S. refinery runs reached their highest rate since Aug. 2005, according to U.S. data.

ICE Brent futures for October fell 97 cents to settle at $97.11 a barrel, the biggest weekly loss since the week to July 11. The contract expires on Monday, adding to pressure as traders roll positions. The November contract fell 90 cents to $97.96 a barrel.

U.S. crude fell 56 cents to settle at $92.27 a barrel. Brent's premium over U.S. crude <CL-LCO1=R> narrowed to$4.84.