OIL FELL BELOW $75 A BARREL ON THURSDAY, A DAY AFTER HITTING RECORD HIGHS, AS A SURPRISE INCREASE IN U.S. GASOLINE INVENTORIES EASED SUPPLY WORRIES DURING PEAK SUMMER DEMAND. GASOLINE STOCKS IN THE UNITED STATES, WHICH HAD BEEN EXPECTED TO FALL, ROSE BY 700,000 BARRELS LAST WEEK, A U.S. GOVERNMENT REPORT SAID. BUT DEMAND CLIMBED DESPITE HIGH PRICES, GAINING 1.4 PERCENT ON THE YEAR IN THE LAST FOUR WEEKS. "THE MARKET IS TAKING IT KIND OF BEARISH BECAUSE BUILDS IN GASOLINE AT THIS TIME OF YEAR ARE NOT NORMAL," SAID BILL O'GRADY, ANALYST AT A.G. EDWARDS. "BUT IT DOES LOOK LIKE CONSUMPTION IS HOLDING FAIRLY WELL," HE ADDED. "I'M NOT SURE THE REPORT IS ALL THAT BEARISH." U.S. CRUDE SHED 34 CENTS TO $74.85 A BARREL BY 1655 GMT. LONDON BRENT CRUDE WAS OFF 11 CENTS TO $73.87. U.S. CRUDE HIT A RECORD HIGH OF $75.40 ON WEDNESDAY, BOOSTED IN PART BY SIGNS THAT U.S. GASOLINE PRICES, NEAR $3 A GALLON AT THE PUMP, HAVE YET TO PINCH THE WALLETS OF MOTORISTS IN THE WORLD'S BIGGEST ENERGY USER. INVESTMENT FUNDS, A KEY DRIVER OF A FOUR-YEAR CRUDE OIL RALLY THAT BEGAN AT $20, REMAIN CONVINCED THERE IS NO END IN SIGHT TO THE BULL MARKET. "IT WILL BE MUCH MORE THAN $100 BEFORE THE BULL MARKET IS OVER," U.S. INVESTOR JIM ROGERS TOLD REUTERS. HE HAS PREDICTED THE CURRENT BULL MARKET HAS ANOTHER 15 YEARS TO RUN.
