Oil slipped on Tuesday as Tropical Storm Wilma was expected to steer clear of rigs and refineries in the U.S. Gulf and the world's top banker said record prices were eroding demand, Reuters reported. U.S. crude lost 51 cents to $63.85 a barrel by 1430 GMT, after a gain of 2.8 percent on Monday. London Brent crude was 83 cents down at $59.74 a barrel. Wilma gained strength in the Caribbean Sea and was expected to become a full-blown hurricane, but its path was set to veer east towards Florida and away from the heart of U.S. oil infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico. "If it does turn away towards Florida it will be a non-event," said oil trader Colin Tang at investment bank Calyon in Singapore. "The market got ahead of itself on Monday." Dealers had worried that Wilma, the 21st named storm of the 2005 Atlantic season, could delay a recovery in U.S. output ahead of peak winter heating fuel demand in the northern hemisphere. As much as 66.4 percent of the Gulf of Mexico region's normal 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) production remains shut after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Five refineries amounting to 1.3 million bpd, or 7.7 percent of U.S. capacity, remain shut. "The underlying 'tug of war' between bullish U.S. refinery outages and product stockdraws and bearish weakening demand may not be resolved for another two to four weeks," said a report by Calyon Corporate and Investment Bank. "In the end, the bulls will win, but it will take healthy U.S. demand to convince the markets." --More 1906 Local Time 1606 GMT
