* Syria, small oil producer, stirs fear of wider turmoil
* Dollar at 29-yr low against Australian dollar
* Brent technicals point to upside target $127 []
(Updates prices, adds OPEC comment)
By Barbara Lewis
RABAT, April 25 (Reuters) - Oil rose above $124 a barrel on
Monday, pushed higher by an escalation of violence in the
oil-producing Middle East and post-election unrest in OPEC
member Nigeria.
Brent <LCOc1> gained 33 cents to $124.32 a barrel by 1134
GMT. U.S. crude <CLc1> rose 45 cents to $112.74.
Brent is again within sight of the peak above $127 a barrel,
touched earlier this month, which was the highest since 2008
when the market reached its all-time high of nearly $150 before
crashing down to less than $40.
"Traders fear a long hot summer of discontent across the
Middle East," Chris Weafer, chief strategist at Moscow's Uralsib
investment bank, wrote in a note.
"News of the spreading post-election violence in the north
of Nigeria is also a price-supporting factor in the oil market."
This year's rally took off in earnest following the loss of
production from OPEC member Libya, which was pumping around 1.6
million barrels per day (bpd) until the outbreak of violence,
following a wave of popular unrest across the North African
region.
Early on Monday, NATO forces flattened a building in Muammar
Gaddafi's compound, while forces loyal to the Libyan leader have
bombarded the western rebel stronghold of Misrata, rebels said.
[] []
Violence also racked Syria, a small non-OPEC oil producer.
Syrian security forces were reported to have killed hundreds
in a crackdown on protests, while in top African oil producer
Nigeria more than 500 people were killed in post-election
violence, a human rights group said. []
[]
Oil market gains could be capped, however, by expectations
high prices will begin to erode demand and limit economic
growth.
A public holiday in many countries on Monday to mark Easter
was also expected to curb trading volumes.
Leading exporter Saudi Arabia has said it has plenty of
spare capacity that can be quickly added to the oil market if
necessary, but its oil minister said it cut output in March
because the market had plenty of oil.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries next
meets to formally reassess its output policy in June.
Delegates told Reuters on Monday they did not expect a
formal change in supply policy at the meeting in Vienna on June
8. []
TECHNICAL LEVELS, DOLLAR EFFECT
Apart from fundamentals of supply and demand, analysts said
the market was technically strong and could draw strength from
the weakness of the U.S. dollar, which makes dollar-denominated
commodities relatively cheap.
Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said Brent's next target was
the high touched earlier this month of $127.02 after it cleared
resistance at $124.02.
The dollar in contrast hit another 29-year low against the
Australian dollar. []
Dollar weakness also supported other commodities, pushing
gold <XAU=> to another record.
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For a 24-hour technical outlook on U.S. oil:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT1/20112504084605.jpg
For a 24-hour technical outlook on Brent oil:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT1/20112504090558.jpg
For stories on Libya & Middle East crisis: []
For a TAKE-A-LOOK on Middle East, N Africa:[]
For an analysis on unrest in Yemen: []
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(Additional reporting by Florence Tan and Manash Goswami in
Singapore; editing by Jason Neely)
