Oil prices slip on profit-taking

World oil prices fell Wednesday as traders cashed in recent gains and awaited the latest weekly snapshot of crude inventories in top global consumer the United States. Brent North Sea crude for delivery in September retreated 73 cents to $111.27 a barrel in London midday trade. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for September, dipped 57 cents to $93.10. Crude markets were retreating after "oil prices jumped to a 12-week peak on Tuesday," Phillip Futures said in a report. "Falling North Sea output, support for more bond buying by the US Federal Reserve and Middle East tensions lifted crude futures on Tuesday, it added. Crude output in the North Sea was set to fall to a record low in September due to oilfield maintenance, media reports said. Meanwhile, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's pledge on Tuesday to crush rebel forces exacerbated tensions in the oil-rich Middle East region. In the US, Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Eric Rosengren's call for the Fed to start buying Treasury and mortgage-backed securities revived hopes of stimulus from the US central bank.