SINGAPORE: Crude prices were up in Asian trade Thursday, mirroring US stock markets as they rallied on a surge in private sector job creation in March, analysts said. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in May, rose 28 cents to $104.55 per barrel. Brent North Sea crude for May delivery gained 20 cents to $115.33.
Crude markets were being supported by a rally in the US equities market late Wednesday, said Serene Lim, oil and gas analyst for ANZ bank in Singapore. "I think it's very much a technical rebound very much lifted by the bullish S&P equities," she told AFP. US stocks made solid gains after being cheered by upbeat statistics released late Wednesday on private sector hiring, which suggested the ailing labour market had turned a corner.
The broad based S&P 500 index advanced 8.82 points (0.67 percent) to 1,328.26, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 71.60 points (0.58 percent) to finish at 12,350.61. Payrolls firm ADP reported that US companies added 201,000 jobs in March, stoking hopes for the government's keenly awaited March jobs data due Friday.
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