By Christian Schmollinger

Aug. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell for a second day on speculation that fuel-consumption declines in the U.S. will spread to other countries as their economies slow.

Gasoline demand was down 2.1 percent through July as record prices and slower economic growth cut consumer spending, an American Petroleum Institute report showed Aug. 13. Europe's economy contracted for the first time since the introduction of the euro almost a decade ago, a report showed yesterday. Oil is down 1 percent this week, poised for a consecutive weekly drop

Crude oil for September delivery dropped as much as $1.38, or 1.2 percent, to $113.63 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $113.69 at 9:51 a.m. Singapore time. Yesterday, futures fell 99 cents, or 0.9 percent, to settle at $115.01 a barrel.

Prices have tumbled 23 percent from the record $147.27 reached on July 11.

European gross domestic product fell 0.2 percent in the second quarter from the first, when it increased 0.7 percent, the European Union statistics office in Luxembourg said yesterday.

Dollar Falls

Most energy and metals futures dropped as the U.S. currency advanced to a 5 1/2-month high versus the euro yesterday because of the European report. A strong dollar reduces the appeal of commodities to investors looking for an inflation hedge.

The dollar traded at $1.4762 per euro at 9:58 a.m. in Tokyo, after rising 0.6 percent yesterday and touching $1.4778, the strongest since Feb. 21. The U.S. currency was at 109.73 yen, following a 0.2 percent gain yesterday.

``The dollar movements tend to magnify underlying trends,'' said National Australia's Burg. ``That's a second order issue on top of the market.''

Brent crude for October settlement fell as much as 90 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $112.78 a barrel on London's ICE Futures Europe exchange at 9:28 a.m. Singapore time.