* Euro at 14-month low versus dollar, helps pressure oil
* Wall Street choppy, adds to oil volatility
NEW YORK, May 6 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures slipped
in choppy trading on Thursday, pressured by the stronger dollar
and the euro's tumble on fears the Greek debt crisis may spread
to other countries in Europe.
"The euro pared its loss and the stock market did also, so
crude bounced off its lows. But trading is choppy. There should
be good support around $78.50," said Chris Dillman, analyst at
Tradition Energy.
U.S. stocks erased losses and briefly turned positive on
Thursday, seesawing as strength in materials and insurance
shares offset weaker-than-expected retail sales. []
The euro fell below $1.27 for the first time in 14 months
on Thursday as fears persisted of contagion from the financial
crisis in parts of Europe. []
European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said a
default for Greece was "out of the question" but also said
officials did not discuss the possibility of buying government
bonds to lower borrowing costs for indebted euro zone
countries.
PRICES
* On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:24 a.m. EDT
(1424 GMT), June crude <CLM0> was down 60 cents, or 0.75
percent, at $79.37 a barrel, trading from $78.24 to $80.39.
* The $78.24 intraday low on Thursday was the weakest
front-month price since $78.06 was struck on March 1.
* In London on the Intercontinental Exchange, June Brent
crude <LCOM0> fell 47 cents, or 0.57 percent, to $82.14 a
barrel, trading from $81.12 to $82.98. The premium of Brent to
NYMEX crude remained more than $2 a barrel.
* NYMEX June RBOB <RBM0> fell 2.54 cents, or 1.14 percent,
to $2.1950 a gallon, trading from $2.1685 to $2.2285.
* NYMEX June heating oil <HOM0> fell 1.45 cents, or 0.66
percent, to $2.17 a gallon, trading from $2.1430 to $2.1920.
* The June/June heating oil crack spread <0#CL-HO=R> was at
$11.65 a barrel. The spread ended Wednesday at $11.78. The
June/June RBOB crack spread <0#RB-CL=R> was at $12.87. The
spread ended Wednesday at $13.29.
* The spread between the current front month and the
five-year forward crude contract <CLc61> was at $14.56, based
on the June 2015 contract Wednesday settlement at $93.93. The
spread ended Wednesday at $13.96.
TECHNICALS
NYMEX crude 10-day/20-day moving average: $83.52/$83.77
Technical support/resistance:
NYMEX crude: $77.18/$81.05
NYMEX heating oil: $2.1439/$2.2251
NYMEX RBOB: $2.1755/$2.2653
For a full report on technicals, click on []
MARKET NEWS
* The number of U.S. workers filing new jobless claims fell
slightly less than expected last week, government data showed.
The four-week moving average of new claims fell 4,750 to
458,500, after rising for four weeks. []
* U.S. nonfarm productivity grew in the first quarter, but
growth slowed sharply, government data showed. []
* Top U.S. store chains posted disappointing April
same-store sales. []
* Russian forces freed a hijacked Russian oil tanker and
rescued its crew on Thursday. []
* Royal Dutch Shell <RDSa.L> has been forced to shut down
some oil output in Nigeria after a fire at a major pipeline in
the Niger Delta. Shell said it did not know the reason for the
fire at its Trans Niger pipeline. []
(Reporting by Robert Gibbons; editing by Jim Marshall)
