I am using the default config while adding the specific directory with nginx installed on my ubuntu 12.04 machine.
server { #listen 80; ## listen
I've just had the same problem on a CentOS 7 box.
Seems I'd hit selinux. Putting selinux into permissive mode (setenforce permissive) has worked round the problem for now. I'll try and get back with a proper fix.
setenforce permissive