* Oil recoups some losses after five days of declines
* EIA reports surprise fall in U.S. crude oil stocks []
* Crude stocks at NYMEX delivery point in Cushing up
(Updates throughout with EIA data, reaction)
By Christopher Johnson
LONDON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Oil rose above $73 a barrel on
Wednesday, rallying after several days of falls, following data
showing a big drop in U.S. crude oil stocks and on a weaker U.S.
dollar <.DXY>.
U.S. crude oil stockpiles posted a surprise draw last week
as refiners ramped up operations and imports fell, weekly data
from the Energy Information Administration showed on Wednesday.
[]
Commercial U.S. crude stockpiles dropped 3.8 million barrels
to 336.1 million barrels in the week ended Dec. 4, the EIA said,
while analysts had forecast stocks would be up 600,000 barrels.
The EIA data went some way towards confirming a report by
the American Petroleum Institute (API) late on Tuesday that
crude inventories in the world's top oil consumer fell 5.8
million barrels last week.
U.S. crude <CLc1> for January delivery was up 60 cents per
barrel at $73.22 by 1600 GMT, having hit an earlier session high
of $73.87. The contract fell $1.31 on Tuesday.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> gained 3 cents to $75.22.
"This week's EIA data was moderately bullish," said Chris
Jarvis, senior analyst, Caprock Risk Management, New Hampshire.
"Overall, today's data will be viewed as moderately positive
with the dollar still the dominant factor for energy prices."
CONTANGO
Losses over the last five days have been partly driven by a
recovery in the dollar. Oil is priced in dollars so a rise in
the currency makes fuel more expensive to most consumers outside
the United States.
The dollar <=USD> index against major currencies <.DXY> was
down around 0.4 percent by 1600 GMT.
For a graphic showing the oil and dollar, see:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/129/CMD_OIL$CR1209.gif
The oil market received some support on Wednesday from
comments by two oil ministers, who said the Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries should not raise its oil output
targets when it meets later this month. []
The group, which pumps more than a third of the world's oil,
meets in the Angolan capital of Luanda on Dec. 22 and many OPEC
ministers see the current oil price range of $70-$80 as fair.
"The market is reasonably stable, so no, I don't think so,"
Nigeria's minister of state for petroleum, Odein Ajumogobia,
said on the sidelines of a meeting of gas exporting nations when
asked if OPEC needed to pump more oil.
The EIA said weekly crude stocks at Cushing, Oklahoma, the
delivery point for NYMEX crude oil futures, were up by 2.5
million barrels, at 33.4 million barrels.
Rising stocks at Cushing over the last month have been
helping to deepen the discount for prompt oil below forward
prices, in what traders call a contango.
For a graphic showing steepening of the forward curve,
click:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/129/CMD_NYOIL21209.gif
Analysts say they expect the contango to deepen further over
the next few weeks and see no return to backwardation until well
into 2010 as U.S. oil demand stays relatively weak.
(Editing by Keiron Henderson)
