Oil steady above $69 a barrel

LONDON, Jan 18 (Reuters): Oil held steady above $69 a barrel on Thursday, supported by falling inventories of crude and threats of an attack on Nigeria's petroleum industry, although a reported rise in US fuel supplies weighed.

Crude is within sight of its highest since December 2014, supported by supply cuts led by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and concern that unrest in producer nations such as Nigeria could further curb output.

Militant group Niger Delta Avengers threatened to attack Nigeria's oil sector in the next few days, potentially hampering supplies in Africa's largest exporter.

"The impact of such a threat, if carried out, would be significant on the global supply and demand balance," said Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM. "The market is still sensitive to geopolitical developments."

Brent crude, the global benchmark, had slipped 7.0 cents to $69.31 by 0943 GMT. On Monday it hit $70.37, the highest since December 2014. US crude was up 2 cents at $63.99 and reached its highest since December 2014 on Tuesday.

A supply report from the American Petroleum Institute on Wednesday presented a mixed picture, with inventories of gasoline and diesel rising and crude stocks falling.