* Brent rebounds after falling as much as 0.6 pct to $114.50
* U.S. crude stockpiles jump 5.7 million barrels -API
* Libya: Gaddafi forces contain rebels' advance
* Coming Up: U.S. EIA weekly inventory report
(Adds Syria speech, upcoming U.S. employment data)
By Alejandro Barbajosa
SINGAPORE, March 30 (Reuters) - Brent was steady near $115
on Wednesday, after falling as much as 0.6 percent on
indications that higher fuel prices were weighing on consumer
confidence in top user the United States, where crude
inventories rose more than expected last week.
Brent crude for May <LCOc1> added 7 cents to $115.23 a
barrel at 0700 GMT, less than $5 from a 2-1/2-year high near
$120 in February, while U.S. crude <CLc1> fell 14 cents to
$104.65.
A prevailing mood of malaise in southern Europe contributed
to a bearish tone, after Standard & Poor's downgraded the credit
ratings of Greece and Portugal, while in Libya, Muammar
Gaddafi's forces contained the rebels' advance.
"Underpinning the strength in the oil price is what is
happening in the Middle East and North Africa, adding a $15 to
$20 premium," said Ben Le Brun, a CMC Markets analyst in Sydney.
"But there is a lot of stockpile in America. The price of
gas is curtailing the economy and damaging consumer confidence,
and with what we are seeing in the euro-zone, these are all
headwinds for oil."
Crude inventories in the U.S. last week rose 5.7 million
barrels, more than three times the expected gain, industry group
the American Petroleum Institute said on Tuesday, while gasoline
stockpiles fell in line with forecasts and distillates including
gas oil and diesel fell less than expected.
Government data on the nation's oil inventories and demand
will follow on Wednesday from the Energy Information
Administration.
U.S. consumers turned gloomy in March as rising energy
prices ignited fears of inflation, a change in mood that could
dent economic growth. Another report on Tuesday showed U.S. home
prices fell for a seventh straight month in
January.[]
Attention for the rest of the week will focus on employment
numbers from the U.S. Non-farm payrolls data for March will be
released on Friday, which will be more closely watched than
usual for a clue as to when U.S. interests rates may rise.
Retail gasoline demand fell last week for a fourth
consecutive week compared with year-ago levels because of higher
prices, which averaged $3.56 a gallon, 27 percent higher than a
year earlier, MasterCard Advisors' SpendingPulse report showed
on Tuesday. []
In Germany, worries about the global economy and inflation
drove down consumer sentiment for the first time in 10 months.
[]
Credit rating downgrades by S&P left Portugal's rating one
notch above junk and Greece's creditworthiness below that of
Egypt. []
In Libya, Muammar Gaddafi's better armed and organised
troops reversed the rapid westward advance of rebels on Tuesday
as world powers meeting in London piled pressure on the Libyan
leader to step down. []
Earlier this week, oil prices had also dropped amid
expectations that a rapid resolution to Libya's civil war would
allow for a quick restart of exports, which virtually vanished
from about 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) before the conflict
started.
A conference of 40 governments and international bodies
agreed to press on with a NATO-led aerial bombardment of Libyan
forces until Gaddafi complied with a U.N. resolution to end
violence against civilians.
Traders were also looking for any signs of spreading unrest
in the Middle East. Syria's President Bashar al-Assad will on
Wednesday give his first public speech since pro-democracy
protests erupted in the south of the country. []
(Editing by Himani Sarkar)
