Oil prices were lower in midafternoon trade here on expectations of higher US crude oil inventories, dealers said. They noted however that prices remained above 62 usd a barrel on supply concerns during the northern hemisphere winter, dealers said. At 2:40 pm (0640 GMT), New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December was down 36 cents at 62.08 usd a barrel from its close of 62.44 usd in the United States yesterday. With Hurricane Wilma sparing offshore oil rigs and onshore refineries in the US Gulf of Mexico region, dealers were focusing on the upcoming release of US inventory data on Wednesday. Dariusz Kowalczyk, a Hong Kong-based investment strategist with CFC Seymour Securities, said expectations for a rise in US crude oil inentories had kept prices down. "The reason (for the price decline) is that the daily reports about production in the Gulf of Mexico are pointing to further increases in domestic output," Kowalczyk said. "I think that imports (of crude) are also continuing to rebound from relatively low levels." Kowalczyk expects the US Department of Energy to report an increase of 5.0 mln barrels in crude oil stockpiles in its weekly report, well above the market consensus for a rise of 2.0 mln barrels. If the US reports an increase as expected, crude oil prices are expected to drop, pulling down gasoline (petrol) and heating oil. At the same time, prices remain volatile, analysts said. While Hurricane Wilma has veered away from the oil-producing southern United States, five weeks still remain in the hurricane season, Kowalczyk pointed out. Winter is also a concern because weather forecasters are suggesting below average temperatures, which could boost demand for heating oil.