* U.S. eyes home loan subsidies in rescue plan
* Congress sets final votes on stimulus for Friday
* Algeria says OPEC compliance to hit 100 percent
(Updates throughout, previous PERTH)
LONDON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - U.S. oil futures rose towards $35
a barrel on Friday, snapping a five-day losing streak, after
news that the U.S. government was working on a mortgage plan for
troubled homeowners helped lift sentiment.
U.S. crude <CLc1> for March delivery rose 80 cents, or 2.3
percent, to $34.78 a barrel by 0943 GMT, after falling $1.96 in
the previous session to settle at $33.98 a barrel, the lowest
since Dec. 19.
London Brent crude for the new front-month of April <LCOc1>
climbed 31 cents to $46.34 a barrel.
The Brent March contract expired on Thursday at $44.65,
extending its premium to U.S. crude to more than $10, due to a
glut at the main U.S. storage hub in Oklahoma and Nigerian
supply problems that tend to have a bigger impact on European
supplies.
But the Brent premium for the April contract was less than
$4, and some analysts expect inventories to ease eventually at
Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for the U.S. futures
contract, based on West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude.
"We expect the energy markets to send mixed signals over the
weeks ahead," MF Global said in its daily commentary on Friday.
"March WTI should be under continued pressure, as it
approaches expiration on the 20th, this similar to weakness
experienced by both the December and January contracts before
it. Brent, on the other hand, should remain firm as OPEC cuts
take hold, while participants also keep a wary eye on
developments in Nigeria."
U.S. JOBLESS
U.S. oil prices have lost about 14 percent this week and are
languishing at a three-week low, pressured by persistent demand
worries and doubts over the efficacy of the U.S. government's
banks rescue plan.
Oil's losses on Thursday were exacerbated by news that the
number of people staying on unemployment benefits in the United
States rose by 11,000 to a record of 4.810 million in the last
week of January. []
In the short term, analysts believe the market's direction
would be influenced by movements in stock markets.
News that the Obama administration was working on a
programme to subsidise mortgage payments for troubled homeowners
renewed hopes the host of measures could pull the world's
largest economy out of its steep tailspin, sparking a late U.S.
stocks rally.
European stocks opened higher on Friday [], while Asian
stocks excluding Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> rose 2.2 percent and the
Nikkei <> climbed 1 percent.
Algerian Oil Minister Chakib Khelil told Reuters on Thursday
that there was a 50 percent chance OPEC could agree to deepen
cuts when it meets in March, and that compliance among members
was solid. []
"We have 85 percent which is unusual for compliance. By
meeting time, we will probably have 100 percent," Khelil said.
(Reporting by Christopher Johnson in London and Fayen Wong in
Perth; editing by James Jukwey)
