* Power outages, flooding hit U.S. East Coast after Sandy

* Gasoline up on Bayway refinery restart delay, fire at BP's hydrotreater

* Crude stockpiles up 2.1 million barrels last week -API

* Coming Up: Germany retail sales for September; 0700 GMT

(Updates prices)

By Florence Tan

SINGAPORE, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Brent crude held steady near $109 a barrel on Wednesday after the huge storm Sandy whiplashed the U.S. East Coast, reducing fuel demand even as refineries in the region gradually resumed operations.

Fuel supply in the storm-hit region is expected to bounce back quickly as most refineries emerged unscathed, but demand was likely to take a much bigger knock as roads and airports remained shut.

Brent crude for December delivery LCOc1 was up 19 cents at $109.27 by 0745 GMT. The front-month contract is set to post its largest monthly fall since June as concerns about a global economic slowdown outweighed supply risks in the Middle East.

U.S. crude for December CLc1 rose 47 cents to $86.15, on track for its biggest monthly loss since May.

"We may have a rapid return of supply but the demand will be slower to recover," said Tony Nunan, a risk manager at Mitsubishi Corp.

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Factbox on oil operations after Sandy ID:nL1E8LU1H9

Graphic on US East Coast power outages

http://link.reuters.com/was63t

Graphic on 24-hr Brent chart analysis:

http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT1/20123110083416.jpg

Graphic on 24-hr U.S. oil chart analysis:

http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT1/20123110082017.jpg

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Millions of people were left reeling in the aftermath of the

winds and heavy rains of the massive storm on Tuesday, as New York City and many parts of the eastern United States struggled with flooding and extensive power outages. ID:nL3E8LU2KJ

"This is really the last thing that the U.S. needed," Nunan said, adding that Americans without insurance to cover storm damage would have less spare cash to spend just as the world's largest economy was showing signs of recovery.

The region's biggest refinery, in Philadelphia, and several others, were ramping up operations on Tuesday after escaping damage.

But flooding at the region's second-largest refinery, Phillips 66's PSX.N 238,000 barrel-per-day plant in Bayway, New Jersey, plus power glitches at two other plants and a key New Jersey terminal hub, slowed the recovery in fuel supplies. ID:nL3E8LU3LQ

The outage at Bayway, nicknamed the "gasoline machine" for its key role in supplying motor fuel to the New York City area, and a fire at BP Plc's BP.L residual hydrotreater in Texas City, boosted gasoline prices. November gasoline futures RBc1 , which expire later today, were up 2.54 percent at $2.7980 a gallon. ID:nL1E8LUBAK

Investors will continue to keep a close watch for any damage to oil infrastructure and on fuel demand after the storm.

"It is still too early to tell whether there has been any significant damage to the network of oil terminals, pipelines, and trucking facilities in the region, but if logistics are damaged, oil prices will likely remain under selling pressure," ANZ analysts said in a note.

The CME CME.O is set to resume floor trading of oil, natural gas and other commodities during normal hours on Wednesday at the NYMEX world headquarters in New York. But the U.S. Energy Department has delayed its weekly petroleum inventory report by a day to Thursday. ID:nL1E8LU2HQ

U.S. crude inventories rose by 2.1 million barrels last week, slightly more than expected, while distillate inventories dropped sharply even as refinery operations jumped, data from the American Petroleum Institute showed. Analysts had expected crude stockpiles to rise by 1.5 million barrels. API/S EIA/S

(Reporting by Florence Tan; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Joseph Radford)

((Florence.Tan@thomsonreuters.com)(+65 6870 3497)(Reuters Messaging: florence.tan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Keywords: MARKETS OIL/