* U.S. consumer spending up again in March
* Euro dips, despite Greece aid package
* Coming up: U.S. personal income for March 1230 GMT
NEW YORK, May 3 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures rose on
Monday, although trading was choppy, amid concerns that the oil
spill in the Gulf of Mexico might disrupt imports and data
showing consumer spending rose in March.
Positive technicals helped push Brent crude in London above
$88 a barrel, its highest level since October 2008.
Operations at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port in the Gulf
of Mexico were normal despite the oil spill offshore, a port
spokeswoman said on Monday. []
BP Plc <BP.L> said on Monday it was working to stem the
undersea oil leak and promised to pay for the cleanup and
compensation claims as the oil spill threatened the U.S. Gulf
Coast. For more on the spill, see [].
U.S. stocks opened higher as details of a financial rescue
package for Greece provided relief and data showed a steady
rise in consumer spending. []
The euro fell as a larger Greek aid package removed the
threat of imminent default, although it failed to dispel fears
about whether the euro zone country would honor new pledges for
drastic wage cuts and tax increases. []
"A hike in reserve requirements by the People's Bank of
China is helping to slow this morning's advance, but has been
unable to force a sustained price down move, given the
continued economic optimism that is still spinning off of the
equity gains," Jim Ritterbusch, president at Ritterbusch &
Associates in Galena, Illinois, said in a research note.
China on Sunday raised the proportion of deposits that
lenders must keep in reserve at the central bank, another step
in its campaign to curb inflation. []
PRICES
* On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:13 a.m. EDT
(1413 GMT), June crude <CLM0> was up 55 cents, or 0.64 percent,
at $86.70 a barrel, trading from $85.83 to $86.79.
* NYMEX front-month crude reached $87.09 on April 6,
highest since $89.82 was struck on Oct. 9, 2008.
* In London on the Intercontinental Exchange, June Brent
crude <LCOM0> rose $1.46, or 1.67 percent, to $88.90 a barrel,
trading from $87.16 to $88.93. The premium of Brent to NYMEX
crude remained well above $2 a barrel.
* NYMEX June RBOB <RBM0> rose 1.91 cents, or 0.8 percent,
to $2.4185 a gallon, trading from $2.3923 to $2.4205.
* NYMEX June heating oil <HOM0> was up 2.20 cents, or 0.95
percent, at $2.3377 a gallon, trading from $2.3121 to $2.34.
* NYMEX May refined products contracts expired on Friday.
* The June/June heating oil crack spread <0#CL-HO=R> was at
$11.87 a barrel. The spread ended Friday at $11.11. The
June/June RBOB crack spread <0#RB-CL=R> was at $15.21. The
spread ended Friday at $14.62.
* The spread between the current front month and the
five-year forward crude contract <CLc61> was at $8.39, based on
the June 2015 contract Friday settlement at $95.09. The spread
ended Friday at $7.94.
TECHNICALS
NYMEX crude 10-day/20-day moving average: $83.82/$84.54
Technical support/resistance:
NYMEX crude: $83.00/$87.00
NYMEX heating oil: $2.25/$2.30
NYMEX RBOB: $2.30/$2.38
For a full report on technicals, click on []
MARKET NEWS
* U.S. consumer spending increased as expected in March for
a sixth straight month, a government report showed. The
Commerce Department said spending rose 0.6 percent, after
rising by an upwardly revised 0.5 percent in February.
[]
(Reporting by Robert Gibbons; Editing by Walter Bagley)
