51.   Price gains could be limited by expectations for more supply as Iraq gears up to export oil under a United Nations plan, traders said.

52.   Some Council members, such as France and Russia, argue that Iraq must only comply with the weapons resolutions in order to begin exporting oil again.

53.   Some local media have also reported that the Moscow Patriarchate has received the right to export oil for profit.

54.   Some traders said speculation that Iraq may begin exporting oil by the end of this year helped weigh on crude prices.

55.   Still, Bush excoriated the administration for failing to convince oil-producing countries to export more oil.

56.   That cleared the last significant hurdle for Iraq to export oil under an agreement it reached with the U.N. in May.

57.   The deal ended a four-year impasse with Moscow, which had previously blocked permission for Kazakhstan to export oil through Russia.

58.   The latest discussions aim to permit Iraq to export some oil so that it will have money to buy needed food and medical supplies.

59.   The problem is how to export the oil and gas from the Caspian, which is really a lake and has no good connections to international shipping lanes.

60.   The strike vote came as Iraq said it expects to begin exporting oil next week, signaling an increase in world supply.