* Dollar weakness after U.S. payrolls data supports oil
* USDA corn forecast boosts ethanol, RBOB futures
* Strike at French oil port supports oil prices
* Coming up: CFTC positions data at 3:30 p.m. EDT Friday
(Updates graphic links)
By Robert Gibbons
NEW YORK, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Friday as
investors bet that worse-than-expected unemployment in the
United States bolstered the case for looser monetary policy
that would weaken the dollar.
The oil futures complex got further support as a strike at
France's top oil port, now in its 12th day threatened to cut
European oil products output. Also, a surprisingly sharp cut in
the U.S. government's corn crop forecast sent cash ethanol
prices sharply higher. []
U.S. nonfarm payrolls fell 95,000 in September, the U.S.
Labor Department said. [] Private sector jobs rose
64,000, less than the consensus forecast, after a 93,000 rise
in August.
U.S. crude for November <CLc1> delivery rose $1, or 1.22
percent, to $82.67 per barrel by noon EDT (1600 GMT), having
traded from $80.30 to $83.13.
ICE Brent November crude <LCOc1> rose 63 cents, or 0.76
percent, to $84.06 a barrel.
"The negative unemployment report makes quantitative easing
after the election a virtual certainty. This expectation has
already affected the dollar's value and pushed energy prices
higher," said John Kilduff of Again Capital LLC in New York.
"Another leg lower for the dollar is likely thereby
creating more commodity inflation. It's not a demand issue with
the employment backdrop; it's financial physics at work."
The U.S. dollar slid to a 15-year low against the Japanese
yen after the payrolls report bolstered the expectation for
further asset purchases from the U.S. Federal Reserve. []
The dollar also fell sharply against the euro on the jobs
data, but it recovered some of those losses after Eurogroup
Chairman Jean-Claude Juncker said he was not happy with the
euro's move to $1.4000, a level surpassed Thursday.
The dollar's weakness this week helped oil prices rally,
with crude oil reaching $84.43 intraday on Thursday, a
five-month high, before the dollar bounced and crude slumped as
investors booked profits ahead of Friday's payrolls report.
A weak dollar boosts oil by making dollar-denominated
commodities cheaper for buyers holding other currencies,
lowering the value of greenbacks paid to producers and
attracting investment looking to shift from cash to
commodities.
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Graphics of oil correlations to the dollar and payrolls:
http://link.reuters.com/puh67p
http://link.reuters.com/kyh67p
http://link.reuters.com/xyh67p
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U.S. stocks rallied, with the Dow Jones industrials moving
above 11,000 for the first time since early May. []
Four oil refineries in southern France face closure this
weekend, the country's oil lobby said on Friday, after workers
at a key oil port voted to continue a strike for a 12th day.
[]
Earlier this week, the U.S. Energy Information
Administration data showed U.S. crude stocks rose by a
greater-than-expected 3.09 barrels last week, though refined
fuel stocks fell. []
Crude and refined oil stocks remained above year-ago
levels, the EIA said.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries meets
in Vienna next week to consider production and market share
policy with crude prices since May hemmed between the $64.24
intraday low on May 20, the weakest price since July 30, 2009,
and the 2010 peak of $87.15 reached on May 3.
(Additional reporting by Emma Farge in London and Alejandro
Barbajosa in Singapore; Editing by David Gregorio)
