UPDATE 5-Oil trims gains as dollar firms on US jobs data

                                
 * US April nonfarm jobs gain the largest since March 2006
                                
 * G7, European leaders meet to try to end Greek debt crisis
                                
 * Oil still about 11 percent down from 19-month high
                                
 
 (Updates with U.S. jobs data)
                                
 By Ikuko Kurahone
                                
 LONDON, May 7 (Reuters) - Oil fell below $77 a barrel on
Friday, reversing its earlier gains, as better-than-expected
U.S. jobs data pushed up the dollar.
                                
 A stronger dollar hikes the cost of oil for buyers in other
currencies.
                                
 Concerns over Greece's debt crisis also haunted the market.
                                
 U.S. crude oil futures <CLc1> fell 95 cents $76.16 a barrel
by 1330 GMT, having risen as high as $78.19 earlier. London
Brent crude <LCOc1> fell 72 cents to $79.11 a barrel.
                                
 Oil turned negative after the release of the U.S. April jobs
data, showing nonfarm payrolls grew at the fastest pace in four
years, although the overall jobless rate remained at a high 9.9
percent, compared with 9.7 percent in March.
                                
 The United States is the world's top oil consumer and its
economic health is considered key to global energy demand.
                                
 "The U.S. nonfarms payroll were somewhat positive but the
jobless rate up to 9.9 percent perhaps turned us back down,"
said Tom Bentz, a broker with BNP Paribas Commodity Futures in
New York. "The dollar strengthened and we came off."
                                
 
                                
 GREEK CRISIS
                                
 Oil prices have made an 11 percent loss from a 19-month high
hit earlier this week following a plunge in global markets due
mainly to concern over the Greek debt crisis.
                                
 "All markets are down this week on concerns over Greece and
Europe. If the whole of the euro zone goes into trouble, it may
somehow offset potential growth in the United States and Asia,
which will be negative input to oil prices," Oliver Jakob with
Petromatrix said.
                                
 Oil has fallen from above $87 hit on Monday, the highest
since October 2008, due to concerns that the Greek crisis might
spill over to other countries such as Spain and Portugal,
putting the whole euro zone economy in trouble.
                                
 The Group of Seven finance ministers were meeting to discuss
the Greek bailout. The Whitehouse said President Barack Obama
was watching developments closely.
                                
 Euro zone leaders also meet later in the day in a special
summit, while Germany's parliament is to vote on the 110 billion
euro ($140 billion) bailout later in the day. [ID:nSGE64608F]
                                
 Global equity markets have also fallen this week, while
market volatility index <.VIX> and gold have risen. [.N][.EU]
                                
< ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
                                
 For interactive 2010 commodities price performance, click on
                                
 http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/10/CMD_PRFG0510.html
                                
 
                                
 For U.S. payrolls, click
                                
 http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/10/US_NFPRUE0510.gif
                                
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 Analysts say actual oil demand so far has not recovered from
last year's fall strongly enough to drive prices higher.
                                
 The National Australia Bank pointed out that U.S. official
weekly oil data had shown a rise in refinery run rates, which
may not necessarily be driven by strong demand in the United
States but a potential increase in fuel inventories.
                                
 "While this reflects refiners responding to higher margins
or expectations of future consumption, there appears to have
been little pickup in demand for oil products," the bank said in
a research note. 
                                
 "Consequently, the effect of increasing refinery activity
has been to transfer oil inventories from crude to oil products,
giving a false indication of an improvement in fundamental
conditions in the U.S."
 <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
                                
 For graphics for refinery utilisation rates in the United
States and Europe, click on
                                
 http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/10/OIL_RFNUE0510.gif
                                
 For a chart of oil's correlation with risk aversion, see: 
  http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/NT_20100705110504.jpg
                                
 For a technical chart, see:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/WT_20100705085001.jpg  
  For graphic on oil-dollar correlation, click on: 
  http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/RSW_20100705104744.jpg
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 (Additional reporting by Florence Tan in Singapore and Janet
McGurty in Tronto; editing by James Jukwey)