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TAMPA, Fla. — The convention hall had all the trappings: Excited delegates in patriotic attire. Journalists sticking cameras in their faces. Vertical signs identifying the states. Balloons suspended high above the arena floor. But the official first day of the 2012 Republican National Convention was over almost as soon as it began.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus called the convention to order at 2 p.m. Two minutes later, he dropped the gavel on the day, thus presiding over quite possibly the most abbreviated convention day ever. With a worrisome storm approaching the Gulf Coast, Republicans felt compelled to cancel the first day. The session took place only to satisfy the rules.

Despite the lack of action, delegates showed up in surprising numbers on the floor of the <…………… continues on Los Angeles Times

Oil traded near the lowest level in two weeks on speculation Tropical Storm Isaac’s impact on output in the Gulf of Mexico will be limited. Gasoline was near a four- month high as a fire spread at Venezuela’s biggest refinery.

West Texas Intermediate futures were little changed in New York after dropping a third day yesterday, the longest losing streak since June. Isaac was near hurricane intensity as it headed for landfall south of New Orleans, according to the National Hurricane Center. A third storage tank caught fire at Venezuela’s 645,000 barrels-a-day Amuay plant, where an Aug. 25 gas explosion killed at least 48 people. Oil also pared gains as investors await an Aug. 31 speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke.

“It seems likely now that Isaac won’t be doing any lasting damage to oil facilities in the Gulf,” said Ric Spooner, a chief market analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney. “Buyers seem reluctant to take prices too much higher from here until they get further detail” on what the Fed might do to boost economic growth, he said.

Oil for October delivery was at $ 95.31 a barrel, down 16 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:13 p.m. Sydney time. The contract yesterday fell 68 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $ 95.47, the lowest close since Aug. 15. Prices are down 3.6 percent this year.

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