LONDON, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Friday on

receding fears over the impact of Hurricane Rafael on oil and

gas infrastructure in the U.S. Gulf while investors also weighed

up fresh Chinese economic stimulus.

Brent crude oil futures lost $1.17, or 1.55%, to

$74.46 a barrel by 1051 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI)

crude was down $1.31, or 1.81%, at $71.05.

The benchmarks have reversed Thursday's gains of nearly 1%,

but Brent and WTI are still on track to finish 2% up over the

week, with investors also examining how U.S. President-elect

Donald Trump's policies might affect oil supply and demand.

Hurricane Rafael, which has caused 391,214 barrels per day

of U.S. crude oil production to be shut in, is forecast to

weaken and move slowly away from U.S. Gulf coast oilfields in

the coming days, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Downward price pressure also came from data showing crude

imports in China, the world's largest oil importer, fell 9% in

October - the sixth consecutive month to show a year-on-year

decline.

China kicked off a fresh round of fiscal support on Friday,

announcing a package that eases debt repayment strains for local

governments.

The nation's economy has faced strong deflationary pressures

in the face of weak domestic demand, a property crisis and

mounting financing strains on indebted local governments,

limiting their investment capability.

"There were no additional stimulus measures targeting

domestic demand, hence the disappointment weighing on prices,"

UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo told Reuters.

Prices had risen on Thursday on expected actions by the

incoming Trump administration, such as tighter sanctions on Iran

and Venezuela, which could limit oil supply to global markets.

"In the short-term, oil prices might rise if the new

President Trump is quick on the draw with oil sanctions," said

PVM analyst John Evans.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Thursday

that Trump's proposed policies of broad-based tariffs,

deportations and tax cuts would have no near-term impact on the

U.S. economy, but the Fed would begin estimating the impact of

such policies on its goals of stable inflation and maximum

employment.

The Fed cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage

point on Thursday.