* Nigerian militants say attack Shell oil platform
* IEA cuts sharply medium-term forecast of oil demand
* China lifts gasoline, diesel, jet fuel prices
* EIA revises U.S. April oil demand higher
By Edward McAllister
NEW YORK, June 29 (Reuters) - Oil rose nearly $2 to top $71
a barrel on Monday, lifted by word of fresh rebel attacks on
oil installations in Nigeria and gains in equity markets.
Nigeria's main militant group said its fighters had
attacked an oil facility belonging to Royal Dutch Shell
<RDSa.L> in the Niger Delta on Monday, days after President
Umaru Yar'Adua proposed an amnesty. []
U.S. crude <CLc1> rose $1.88 to $71.04 a barrel by 11:37
EDT (1537 GMT). London Brent crude <LCOc1> rose $1.69 to
$70.61.
Further support came as U.S. stocks opened higher on signs
of life in the global economy, which kept investors optimistic
over the prospect of a recovery. []
"Equities are a little bit stronger and that has been
helping the market," said Peter Beutel, president of Cameron
Hanover in New Canaan, Connecticut, adding that buying by funds
had been strong.
"Anytime that we see the Dow Jones higher, the funds take
that as a sign that the economy is going to strengthen and that
oil demand will strengthen along with that," he added.
Signs of a turnaround in the global economy have helped
lift crude prices up from below $40 a barrel in February. The
economic crisis has battered global fuel demand, knocking crude
off record highs set above $147 a barrel last year.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration revised up April
U.S. oil demand by 1.18 percent from its early estimate of
18.255 million barrels per day, suggesting a potential
turnaround in the U.S. economy. []
The EIA revision came after a bullish International Energy
Agency mid-term oil demand forecast on Monday, which said that
there was a chance of an extended contraction and that the
threat of a supply crunch had only receded, not gone away.
[]
Based on a higher economic growth scenario, the IEA
predicted on Monday product demand would grow by 0.6 percent,
or 540,000 bpd on average, between 2008 and 2014, taking demand
from 85.8 million bpd to 89 million bpd.
Number 2 oil consumer China unexpectedly increased gasoline
and diesel prices on Monday by nearly 9 percent and 10 percent
respectively. []
NIGERIA
Crude was bolstered by militant activity in Nigeria as
fighters forced production outages in the West African
country.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND)
said its fighters struck the Shell Forcados platform in the
Delta state at about 0230 GMT. []
There was no immediate independent confirmation but Shell
said it shut in some oil production at its western operations
in the Delta while it investigated reports of attacks.
[]
"The Nigerian situation is the main factor in the market,"
said Mike Wittner, global head of oil research at Societe
Generale. "The attacks appear to be removing some oil
production capacity from the market."
On Friday, four militant Nigerian factions said they would
accept in principle an amnesty offer from President Umaru
Yar'Adua, raising hopes Africa's top oil producer would halt a
battle with rebels. []
Pipeline bombings, attacks on oil and gas installations and
kidnapping of industry workers over the past three years have
prevented Nigeria from pumping much above two-thirds of its
installed oil output capacity of 3 million barrels per day
(bpd).
Algerian Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil said on
Monday oil demand was still weak due to the weakness of the
U.S. and European economies and world oil stocks remained
high.
Khelil said an increase in OPEC oil production was hard to
envisage, despite rising crude prices. []
Oil analysts say OPEC can help tighten the oil market
significantly later this year if it continues to implement its
promise to cut oil production by 4.2 million bpd from its
September output levels.
(Additional reporting by Matthew Robinson, Gene Ramos and
Robert Gibbons in New York and Christopher Johnson in London;
Editing by Christian Wiessner)
