* China exports jump 48.5 pct in May, official data show
* IEA raises oil demand growth forecast for 2010
* For a technical view, click: []
* Coming Up: U.S. Federal budget for May at 1800 GMT
(Updates throughout)
By Christopher Johnson
LONDON, June 10 (Reuters) - Oil climbed more than $1 to
around $76 per barrel on Thursday after Chinese data showed a
surge in exports in May and as the IEA revised up its estimate
of global oil demand growth for this year.
China's exports rose 48.5 percent in May from a year
earlier, beating forecasts of a 32 percent gain and confirming a
Reuters report on Wednesday, which helped send oil up more than
3 percent. []
U.S. crude for July <CLc1> rose $1.63 to $76.01 a barrel by
1400 GMT. ICE Brent <LCOc1> gained $1.33 to $75.60.
Asian, European and U.S. stock markets all strengthened and
the dollar fell after the strong Chinese data, which helped ease
some concerns over a slowdown in Europe. [] []
"Risk appetite is creeping back into the markets," said
Carsten Fritsch, analyst at Commerzbank in Frankfurt.
Support for oil prices came from the International Energy
Agency (IEA), which on Thursday revised up its estimate of
global oil demand growth this year due to increased fuel use in
the United States and on robust Chinese oil consumption. []
The Paris-based agency raised its global oil demand growth
forecast for 2010 by 70,000 barrels per day to 1.68 million bpd,
saying oil demand this year would hit 86.44 million barrels per
day (bpd), up from 84.76 million bpd in 2009.
U.S. DEMAND
David Fyfe, head of the IEA's Oil Industry and Markets
Division, said the upward revision was a response to further
signs of a recovery in economic activity.
"The demand revision was quite a minor one, but it was based
on stronger demand for middle distillates in the United States,"
Fyfe said.
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To see a Reuters Insider TV interview with the IEA's David
Fyfe, click: http://link.reuters.com/pub29k
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Much of the global growth this year has been coming from
China but some economists question whether the momentum there
can be sustained given debt problems in Europe, the country's
biggest overseas market.
Leaked numbers cited by market sources on Thursday pointed
to an increase in Chinese industrial output of 16.5 percent in
May from a year earlier, lower than expected. []
China's May crude oil imports rose 4.3 percent from a year
ago, but were off a record high hit in April. []
U.S. crude stocks last week dropped a larger-than-expected
1.8 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration (EIA)
said on Wednesday. []
That was the same amount by which stockpiles of distillates
including heating oil and diesel increased as distillate demand
slowed, showing a gain of 9.3 percent in the four weeks ended
June 4, compared with 17 percent in the four weeks to May 28.
U.S. gasoline supplies were little changed last week, the
EIA said.
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For a graphic showing the evolution of global crude and oil
products in floating storage:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/10/OIL_FLTS0610.gif
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(Additional reporting by Alejandro Barbajosa in Singapore;
editing by James Jukwey)
