UPDATE 7-Oil steadies as hopes of easing trade tensions lend support

* U.S. softens stance on Huawei buying tech components
* Trump says not ready to make a trade deal with China
OPEC sees bearish oil market for rest of 2019
* POLL-U.S. crude stocks fell last week, products seen
rising
* Coming Up: API's U.S. oil inventory report at 4:30
p.m./2030 GMT

(Adds settlement prices, latest Trump comments on trade deal)
By Jessica Resnick-Ault
NEW YORK, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Oil prices steadied on Tuesday
on optimism U.S.-China trade tensions will ease and hopes major
economies will take stimulus measures to ward off a possible
economic slowdown, after falling earlier on concerns over future
demand.
Brent crude LCOc1 settled 29 cents, or 0.5%, higher at
$60.03 a barrel, while U.S. crude CLc1 rose 13 cents to $56.34
a barrel. U.S. crude turned lower in post-settlement trade after
U.S. President Donald Trump said he was not ready to make a
trade deal with China. The United States said it would extend a reprieve that
permits China's Huawei Technologies HWT.UL to buy components
from U.S. companies, signalling a slight softening of the trade
conflict between the world's two largest economies. "It's the ebbing and flowing of the U.S.-China trade war and
some hope of economic stimulus that's coming at these markets,
including potential fiscal stimulus by the Germans," said John
Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital in New York.
Concerns over the overall level of demand for oil continue
to weigh on crude prices. The Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries cut its forecast for global oil demand
growth in 2019 by 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.10 million
bpd and indicated the market would be in slight surplus in 2020.
A rally in equity markets around the world on growing
expectations that global economies will take action against
slowing growth also gave oil prices a floor. MKTS/GLOB
China's new lending reference rate was set slightly lower on
Tuesday after the central bank announced interest rate reforms
designed to reduce corporate borrowing costs, while in Germany
there were also positive moves.
Germany's coalition government said it would be prepared to
ditch its balanced budget rule and take on new debt to counter a
possible recession. "China's announcement of key interest rate reforms over the
weekend has driven expectations of an imminent reduction in
corporate borrowing costs," Cantor Fitzgerald said in a note.
Traders were also watching for signs of tension in the
Middle East after the United States described as unfortunate the
release of an Iranian tanker at the centre of a confrontation
between Iran and Washington, warning Greece and Mediterranean
ports against helping the vessel. Also, the market awaits weekly data on U.S. inventories,
which was expected to show a 1.9 million-barrel drop in crude
stocks for last week. The American Petroleum Institute (API), an
industry group, reports its estimates at 4:30 p.m., followed by
and government data on Wednesday morning. EIA/S