* Cushing oil inventories rise by 912,000 bbls -Genscape
* Stronger dollar, weak homes sales pressure oil
* Rebel group says it blows up oil facility in Nigeria
* Coming up: U.S. non-farm payrolls at 1330 GMT on Friday
(Updates prices, adds quote, recasts)
By Edward McAllister
NEW YORK, March 4 (Reuters) - Oil fell nearly 1 percent
toward $80 a barrel on Thursday as the dollar strengthened and
some weak economic data soured sentiment after crude hit a
seven-week high on Wednesday.
The euro fell versus the dollar on Thursday as comments by
the European Central Bank reinforced the view interest rates in
the region will remain low in the foreseeable future. []
A stronger dollar tends to pressure oil because it makes
dollar-denominated commodities more expensive for other
currency holders.
Meanwhile, pending sales of existing U.S. homes fell more
than expected in January, according to the National Association
of Realtors, casting a shadow over some earlier positive
economic data in the world's largest energy consumer.
[]
Benchmark U.S. crude oil futures <CLc1> for April fell 66
cents to settle at $80.21 per barrel. The contract reached a
peak of $81.23 on Wednesday, its highest intraday point since
January 12, as gasoline prices hit the highest level since
October 2008.
London ICE Brent <LCOc1> for April fell 71 cents to settle
at $78.54 a barrel.
"The market was not responding well to the positive
economic reports. Now home sales data is weighing. Once again
the market is in $80/$81 range and can't sustain a rally," said
Tom Bentz, broker at BNP Paribas Commodity Futures Inc in New
York.
Crude oil prices have been trading in a tight range between
$78 and $81 a barrel in recent days, balking when prices try to
make a break to the upside.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
Crude oil's trading range:http://link.reuters.com/bux23j
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> A report from energy industry data provider Genscape showed
oil inventories at the key U.S. crude oil hub at Cushing,
Oklahoma, -- the delivery point for the U.S. oil futures
contract -- rose by 911,583 barrels to 31.74 million barrels in
the week to March 2. []
Earlier, data showed that U.S. jobs claims fell last week,
the Labor Department said on Thursday. A separate report from
the Commerce Department showed orders received by U.S.
factories rose 1.7 percent in January after a 1.5 percent
increase in December. []
The market is waiting for closely-watched U.S. non-farm
payroll data on Friday at 8:30 a.m. EST (1330 GMT) for any
potential sign of economic recovery.
Friday's employment report is expected to show a loss of
50,000 jobs in February, compared with 20,000 job cuts in
January, according to economists polled by Reuters.
But some market watchers said that an even greater number
of job losses are already priced in to the oil market.
Reports of an attack on an oil facility in Nigeria gave
some support to prices on Thursday, raising worries over
production from the Niger Delta after a period of relative
calm.
A militant faction in Nigeria's restive Niger Delta said it
blew up an oil manifold operated by Italy's Agip <ENI.MI> on
Wednesday. There was no immediate independent confirmation.
[]
The attack would be the second in as many days in the
Delta, where an amnesty program last year brought more than six
months of peace.
China Investment Corp, the country's sovereign wealth fund,
believes commodity prices are outpacing the global economic
recovery, fueled by loose monetary policies, a top official
said on Thursday.
"Personally, I think the prices are a bit too high,
relative to the strength of real economic recovery," Jesse
Wang, CIC executive vice president and chief risk officer, said
on the sidelines of a conference in Beijing. []
A potentially bearish sign for crude demand came on
Wednesday when the Energy Information Administration said U.S.
crude inventories rose by a larger-than-expected 4.1 million
barrels last week, while gasoline stocks also increased,
raising questions about U.S. energy demand. []
Balancing those figures were data showing total U.S. oil
demand grew 0.3 percent in the past four weeks from a year
earlier, raising expectations for an end to a 1-1/2 year period
of sustained consumption decreases.
(Additional reporting by Robert Gibbons and Gene Ramos in New
York, Christopher Johnson in London; Editing by John Picinich
and Rebekah Kebede)
