Reply #2: Oil hovers above $82 in Asia as rally pauses

[ozymandius]

SINGAPORE – Oil prices hovered above $82 a barrel Thursday in Asia, pausing from a rally that lifted the commodity to a three-month high this week amid positive U.S. corporate earnings and economic figures.

Signs of improving U.S. oil demand helped support crude prices. In its weekly report Wednesday, the Energy Department said commercial oil inventories fell by 2.8 million barrels last week, a bigger drop than analysts had expected.

Also on Wednesday, payroll company ADP said private employers increased hiring last month and a service sector index rose unexpectedly in July. Broadcaster CBS Corp., video game maker Electronic Arts Inc., online travel site Priceline.com Inc. and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. reported better than expected second-quarter earnings.

In other Nymex trading in September contracts, heating oil was steady at $2.2027 a gallon, gasoline skidded 0.19 cent to $2.1731 a gallon and natural gas held at 4.744 per 1,000 cubic feet.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oil_prices