Oil rises to near $85 as traders eye jobs report

[May 10, 2011]  SINGAPORE (AP) -- Oil prices rose to near $85 a barrel Monday in Asia as investors look to this week's key jobs report for evidence the U.S. economy is improving.

Benchmark oil for January delivery was up $1.20 to $84.96 a barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 10 cents to settle at $83.76 on Friday.

Traders will be closely watching Friday's unemployment numbers for signs more Americans are going back to work as the economy slowly recovers from last year's recession.

Crude advanced despite mixed dollar trading. The euro fell early in the session before recovering to $1.3278 after European Union nations agreed to give 67.5 billion euros ($89.4 billion) in bailout loans to Ireland on Sunday.

Oil normally falls as the dollar strengthens since crude becomes more expensive for investors with other currencies.

"Oil is possibly detaching further from the strong dollar while placing greater emphasis on increasing indications of favorable U.S. economic guidance," Ritterbusch and Associates said in a report. "The important November employment report could prove pivotal in determining the course of the oil trade across December."

In other Nymex trading in December contracts, heating oil rose 2.4 cents to $2.34 a gallon and gasoline added 3 cents at $2.24 a gallon. Natural gas gained 3.6 cents to $4.44 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent crude jumped 90 cents to $86.48 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

[Associated Press; By ALEX KENNEDY]

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