* Greece asks for financial aid from EU/IMF
* Euro bounces off one-year low against dollar on Greece
* Chinese economy to grow by almost 10 percent this year-CASS
(Updates prices, adds detail)
By David Sheppard
LONDON, April 23 (Reuters) - Oil rose above $84 a barrel on
Friday as signals of a stronger economic recovery in the United
States boosted the outlook for energy demand.
U.S. crude for June delivery <CLc1> rose 37 cents to $84.07
a barrel by 1459 GMT, after reversing a two-dollar intra-day
drop on Thursday. It was $3 from an 18-month high above $87
reached on April 6.
Equity markets were up on Friday, helping oil prices reverse
earlier losses, as data showed newly built single-family homes
rebounded strongly in the United States in March to hit their
highest level in eight months.
Markets were also supported by indebted Greece's decision to
activate European Union and International Monetary Fund aid,
though doubts remain over whether it will lead to a long-term
fix.
"We still need to see how it will work," Petromatrix analyst
Olivier Jakob said. "For the moment it is actually creating
additional uncertainty for the market."
The euro firmed off a one-year low against the dollar on the
move. Strength in the U.S. currency tends to weigh on
dollar-priced commodities like oil as they become more expensive
for holders of other countries.
SPRING DEMAND
Prices were supported by growing demand for oil in booming
Asian economies China and India. Demand is set to grow
seasonally in the agriculture and transport sectors.
"We are going to see more demand coming in spring and summer
and that is going to push prices higher," said Peter McGuire,
managing director of Commodity Warrants Australia in Sydney,
adding that he expected oil to approach $90 in June.
The front-month U.S. crude contract was heading for its
first weekly increase in a fortnight, shrugging off rising
domestic stockpiles of crude and oil product inventories.
But U.S. crude was trading more than $2 below ICE Brent for
June <LCOc1>, the benchmark for most of Europe, Africa and Asia,
which rose 71 cents to $86.37 a barrel.
Most traders consider Brent better represents world oil
balances because U.S. crude prices can be locally affected by
gluts at the land-locked Cushing, Oklahoma pricing point, where
stocks jumped last week.
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For a graphic of U.S. crude and Brent futures and their recent
divergence, click on:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/SBrb_20102204104405.jpg
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China's economy will probably grow by about 9.9 percent this
year, compared with a previous outlook of 9.1 percent, according
to forecasts by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS)
published on Friday. []
Prices were also supported by improving business sentiment
in Germany, the world's third largest economy, with a closely
watched survey showing the brightest outlook from 7,000 firms
since May 2008. []
(Additional reporting by Alejandro Barbajosa in Singapore;
editing by William Hardy)
