Oil prices rallied this evening as traders drew comfort from a better than expected employment report in top crude consumer the United States, and after Greece reached a crucial debt-swap deal.
US crude climbed $1.33 cents to $107.91 a barrel. In London, Brent North Sea crude rose 51 cents to $125.95.
In its closely watched report, the Labor Department said the US economy added a net 227,000 jobs in February, well above expectations, and the unemployment rate held at 8.3%, a three-year low.
Greece also said today that it had clinched an "historic" debt swap, opening the way for an urgent second bail-out to save the country from bankruptcy and the euro zone from a new crisis.
Crude prices remain well supported by ongoing geopolitical worries over major crude producer Iran and its nuclear programme. The prospect of new talks on the issue comes at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and Israel, and as Tehran struggles under a punishing new range of US and European Union sanctions.
Western powers and Israel suspect Iran is seeking to build a nuclear bomb under the guise of a civilian atomic programme, a charge consistently denied by Tehran, which says its nuclear drive is for peaceful purposes.
