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* U.S. crude inventories at Cushing jump 1.8 mln bbls -EIA
* Strong Chinese demand growth lifts Brent relative to WTI
* For a technical outlook on crude prices: []
* Coming Up: U.S. weekly jobless claims; 1230 GMT
(Updates prices)
By Alejandro Barbajosa
SINGAPORE, April 22 (Reuters) - Oil was steady below $84 on
Thursday after soaring U.S. inventories signalled demand in the
world's top energy user is lagging the recovery in the global
economy.
The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday said the
world's recovery from recession had been quicker than expected,
raising forecasts for growth this year, while China reported
robust oil imports in March. []
But crude inventories in the United States rose
unexpectedly last week, government statistics showed on
Wednesday, while fuel supplies climbed more than forecast.
[]
"The unexpected increase in crude inventories speaks of a
bearish outlook," said Serene Lim, a Singapore-based oil
analyst at ANZ. "Demand has not really kept up with the
economic recovery."
U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for June
<CLc1> fell 5 cents to $83.63 a barrel by 0642 GMT. The
front-month contract reached an 18-month high above $87 on
April 6.
WTI prices are under pressure from last week's
1.8-million-barrel stockpile gain at the Cushing, Oklahoma,
pricing point reported by the Energy Information
Administration, which accounted for most of the
1.9-million-barrel increase logged at a national level.
For chart watchers, U.S. crude is bound to continue in a
falling trend, targeting $82 a barrel.
At more than 34 million barrels, landlocked crude
inventories at Cushing are nearing the level at which they
trigger a disconnection of WTI from global oil markets.
ICE Brent crude for June <LCOc1> was trading about $2
higher than WTI on Thursday, up 5 cents at $85.75 a barrel
after rising a day earlier on data showing strong Chinese
demand and diverging from falling U.S. crude.
CHINA LEADS, U.S. LAGS
China's apparent oil demand in March rose 12.3 percent from
a year earlier, the seventh double-digit increase in a row,
Reuters calculations showed from official data released on
Wednesday. []
"There could be some support from Chinese demand, looking
at how strong the economic growth is," Lim said. "There is high
demand because of the spring seasonal peak from agriculture."
Rising consumption in China, the world's second-largest oil
user, has helped support crude prices as demand from developed
economies struggles to rebound from the recession.
U.S. demand for distillates including heating oil and
diesel fell 0.1 percent in the past four weeks from a year
earlier, the EIA said. Inventories climbed 2.1 million barrels
to 148.9 million barrels, eclipsing a forecast rise of 800,000
barrel.
And gasoline stocks rose 3.6 million barrels to 224.9
million barrels, by far topping projections by analysts polled
by Reuters who had forecast a build of 400,000 barrels.
The dollar was down 0.08 percent against a basket of
currencies on Thursday. Unease among investors over the Greek
debt saga on Wednesday sapped the euro, while the yen gained.
(Editing by Ed Lane)
