UPDATE 8-Oil falls as China economic concerns outweigh rising refinery runs

* Chinese economy registers slowest growth in nearly three
decades
* China's September refinery throughput up 9.4%
* U.S. crude stocks rise, product stocks fall -EIA
* U.S. drillers add oil rigs for 2nd week in a row -Baker
Hughes

(Updates with settlement prices, adds market activity)
By Stephanie Kelly
NEW YORK, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Oil prices edged lower on
Friday, as concerns about China's economy outweighed bullish
signals from its refining sector, but losses were limited on
hopes for progress toward a U.S.-China trade agreement.
Benchmark Brent crude oil futures LCOc1 fell 49 cents to
settle at $59.42 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI)
crude CLc1 futures lost 15 cents to settle at $53.78 a barrel.
For the week Brent fell 1.8%, while WTI lost 1.7%.
China's economic growth slowed to 6% year-on-year in the
third quarter, its weakest in 27-1/2 years and short of
expectations due to soft factory production and continuing trade
tensions with the United States. China's September refinery throughput, however, rose 9.4%
year on year, a signal that petroleum demand from the world's
biggest oil importer remained robust despite economic headwinds.
U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators are working on nailing
down a Phase 1 trade deal text for their presidents to sign next
month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Wednesday.
"For now, trade related concerns over a slowed global
economic growth path have been pushed to the sidelines as
markets await additional guidance regarding U.S.-Chinese trade
negotiations," Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch and
Associates, said in a report.
The ongoing dispute has increased worries about a global
recession that would dent demand for oil.
The Forties oil and gas pipeline system (FPS) in the British
North Sea reopened as planned on Friday after being halted for a
few hours by a power surge resulting from a lightning strike,
operator Ineos said. The system transports the Forties crude oil stream that
makes the biggest contribution to the Brent benchmark.
In the United States, falling product stocks countered
higher U.S. crude oil stocks USOILC=ECI , which rose by 9.3
million barrels in the week to Oct. 11. EIA/S
U.S. energy firms this week increased the number of oil rigs
operating for a second week in a row for the first time since
June. Companies added one oil rig in the week to Oct. 18,
bringing the total count to 713, General Electric Co's GE.N
Baker Hughes energy services firm said on Friday.
RIG-OL-USA-BHI The joint technical committee monitoring a global oil
production pact between the Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC) and partners found that compliance is
being exceeded, with cuts for September representing 236% of
agreed quotas, sources said. OPEC and its allies, including Russia, have agreed to limit
oil output by 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) until March
2020.
OPEC lowered its 2019 global oil demand growth forecast to
0.98 million bpd while leaving its 2020 demand growth estimate
unchanged at 1.08 million bpd, its latest monthly report said.
Money managers cut their combined futures and options
position in New York and London by 11,377 contracts to 102,974
in the week to October 15, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading
Commission (CFTC) said on Friday.