Oil back above $80 on strong China, US data

Friday, 1 October 2010 22:39 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil rose back above $80 on Friday to a fresh seven-week high after stronger-than-expected U.S. and Chinese economic data raised hopes of demand recovery in the world’s largest consumers.

China’s manufacturing sector gathered momentum last month, the official purchasing managers index (PMI) number showed, providing further evidence that the economy is pulling smoothly out of a second-quarter swoon.

U.S. crude for November rose 63 cents to $80.60 a barrel at 0654 GMT, adding to an 11.2 percent gain in September, the largest monthly jump since May 2009.

ICE Brent for November was up 66 cents at $82.97 a barrel, the highest in more than eight weeks.

“The China PMI data shows that the manufacturing sector is accelerating and will result in stronger oil demand,” said Michelle Kwek, an analyst at Informa Global Markets in Singapore.

“This has boosted sentiment and kept oil prices supported.”

China’s financial markets are closed for a week from October 1 to 7 for the National Day holiday.

In the United States, data on Thursday showed new jobless claims fell last week, regional manufacturing grew faster than expected and consumer spending was stronger than expected.