Oil prices extend gains

LONDON (AFP) - World oil prices rose further on Wednesday, mirroring rebounding global stock markets, as hopes grew for a potential EU bailout of debt-ridden Greece, traders said.
New Yorks main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March, won 53 cents to 74.28 dollars a barrel, after soaring by 1.86 dollars on Tuesday.
Brent North Sea crude for March delivery added 26 cents to 72.38 dollars on Wednesday, after climbing 2.02 dollars the previous day.
Crude futures had rebounded Tuesday as the dollar weakened against the euro on whetted risk appetite, making crude cheaper for buyers using stronger currencies.
The euro briefly surpassed 1.38 dollars on Tuesday on intense speculation the European Union will help Greece resolve its fiscal crisis after many players had bet against the currency in recent weeks, dealers said.
However, the single currency turned lower against the dollar on Wednesday as eurozone finance ministers prepared to discuss Greece.
Eurozone finance ministers confered by telephone on the Greek economic crisis on Wednesday, as plans to help Athens out of its budget crisis were being drawn up.
Greeces European partners will also convene at a summit on Thursday in Brussels.
Hints that the European Union, or rather Germany, will approve bailing Greece out of its debt hole at tomorrows European summit brought relief to the markets with oil a major beneficiary, assisted by blizzards on the US East Coast and a weaker dollar, said PVM analyst David Hufton.
The Greek debt situation is a Lehmans with bells on it, he added, referring to the US investment bank Lehman Brothers, whose collapse in September 2008 signalled the start of the global economic crisis. The failure to support Lehman is blamed by many as the seminal moment in the financial crisis we are still trying to shake off.
A failure to bail out Greece risks sending us into another global economic tailspin and is therefore inconceivable.
The OPEC oil producers cartel meanwhile held its forecast for modest growth in world oil demand this year, but warned the slow pace of economic recovery was clouding the outlook.
The slow pace of the recovery in the world economy in 2010 is putting pressure on oil demand, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said in its February report.
As a result, US demand is a key uncertainty for this year. Non-OECD regions will be the sole contributors to global demand growth in 2010.
World oil demand in 2010 was forecast to grow by 0.8 million barrels per day (bpd) to average 85.1 million bpd, in line with the previous forecast, the report said.
The global recovery is proceeding apace... but the strength of the upturn in 2010 is still uncertain and regionally uneven, OPEC found.
It was primarily uncertainty about the pace of the US economic recovery that was creating some downward risk on the countrys oil demand this year.
Across the Atlantic, meanwhile, traders were keeping a keen eye on another cold snap which usually ramp up demand for heating fuel.
The US Department of Energys weekly petroleum inventories report, usually published on Wednesday, had been delayed by the weather and will be released at 1600 GMT on Friday.