SINGAPORE, Nov 6, 2007 (AP) -- Oil prices fell more than US$1 in Asian trading Monday as traders pocketed gains from the previous session's record settlement.

The release of eight Turkish soldiers by Kurdish rebels Sunday also contributed to the decline, easing some concerns about whether Turkey launches attacks on guerrilla bases in northern Iraq. Escalating tensions in the Middle East could disrupt oil supplies out of the region.

But prices remained supported by a tight supply-demand balance heading into the Northern Hemisphere winter, said Tetsu Emori, commodity markets fund manager at ASTMAX Futures Co. in Tokyo.

"Profit-taking should be the main factor moving the market today," Emori said.

Light, sweet crude for December delivery dropped US$1.13 to US$94.80 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midafternoon in Singapore. It fell as much as US$1.32 earlier in the session.

The contract on Friday rose US$2.44 to settle at a record US$95.93 a barrel after rising as high as USS$96.05 _ short of a trading record of US$96.24 a barrel set Thursday.

Crude prices are within the range of inflation-adjusted highs set in early 1980. Depending on the how the adjustment is calculated, US$38 a barrel then would be worth US$96 to US$103 or more today.

Refinery problems continue to support crude futures.

Operations at a 172,000 barrel-per-day Petroplus Holdings AG refinery in England are expected to be limited for a month due to a fire earlier last week. And Chevron Corp. said Friday its 330,000 barrel-per-day refinery in Pascagoula, Mississippi, will run at reduced rates until early next year due to an August fire.

Additionally, investors already concerned about falling oil supplies received word that Hurricane Noel may have disrupted some oil shipments last week. And analysts said OPEC production increases that began Thursday have been hampered by maintenance at some Middle Eastern oil fields.

The confluence of headlines fueled fears that there will be fourth quarter shortages of oil and other petroleum products.

Heating oil futures dropped 1.29 cents to US$2.5608 a gallon (3.8 liters) while gasoline prices lost 1.76 cents to US$2.4219 a gallon.

In London, December Brent crude lost 78 cents to US$91.30 a barrel on the ICE futures exchange.

Natural gas futures declined 14.8 cents to US$8.27 per 1,000 cubic feet.