NYMEX-Crude down, profit-taking after sharp gains

NEW YORK, Oct 22 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures were
down about 1 percent on Thursday, as traders booked profits
after a rally to $82 a barrel, highest in a year, on
Wednesday.

Early bearish news on the labor front weighed on oil
futures. The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for
unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week,
according to a Labor Department report. [ID:nN22534549]

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 .SPX and Nasdaq .IXIC
indexes fell on the jobless benefits data and the Dow
Industrials Average .DJI rose, lifted by solid results from
several components. [.N]

The dollar rebounded from 14-month lows against the euro as
earlier disappointing corporate earnings dented demand for
higher yielding currencies and assets. [USD/]

"We are seeing a little bit of profit-taking here as crude
oil futures are now correcting after they broke out of the
long-standing range of $65-$75 and went up in an almost
vertical move to $82, said Andy Lebow, broker at MF Global in
New York:

"There are questions regarding the stability of this oil
rally and about demand. Oil isn't getting any lift from the
stock markets today as economic data and corporate earnings
results are mixed." Lebow added.

Crude futures fell after Wednesday's surge to $82 a barrel,
the highest since Oct. 14, 2008, when oil hit $84.83.

Prices had risen on Wednesday as a weak dollar attracted
commodities buying and government oil inventory data showed a
sharp drop in gasoline supplies and a smaller-than-expected
rise in crude oil stocks. [EIA/S]

PRICES

* On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:10 p.m. EDT
(1610 GMT), December crude CLZ9 was down 87 cents, or 1.07
percent, at $80.50 a barrel, trading from $79.90 to $81.50.

* In London, December Brent crude LCOZ9 fell 80 cents, or
1 percent, to $78.89 a barrel, trading from $78.35 to $79.93.

* NYMEX November RBOB RBX9 was down 3.70 cents, or 1.8
percent, at $2.0173 a gallon, trading from $2.0122 to $2.0515.

* NYMEX November heating oil HOX9 was down 2.52 cents, or
1.2 percent, at $2.0801 a gallon, trading from $2.0745 to
$2.1107.

* The December/December RBOB crack spread <0#RB-CL=R> was
at $4.89, after ending at $5.38 on Wednesday. The
December/December heating oil crack spread <0#CL-HO=R> was at
$8.12, after ending at $8.28 on Wednesday.

* The spread between the current front month and the
five-year forward crude contract CLc61 was at $11.94, based
on the December 2014 contract Wednesday settlement at 2.44. The
spread ended Wednesday at $11.07.

TECHNICALS

NYMEX crude 10-day/20-day moving average: $75.22/$71.41

Technical support/resistance:

NYMEX crude: $77.64/$82.00

NYMEX heating oil: $2.0618/$2.1488

NYMEX RBOB: $2.0075/$2.1011

For a full report on technicals, click on [ID:nLM642633]

MARKET NEWS

* OPEC seaborne oil exports, excluding Angola and Ecuador,
will rise 90,000 barrels per day in the four weeks to Nov. 7,
British consultancy Oil Movements said in its latest weekly
estimate. [ID:nWLA6393]

* OPEC could raise oil output in December if crude oil
prices top $100 per barrel in coming months, a source close to
OPEC president Angola said. [ID:nLM143949]

* The U.S. Energy Information Administration said that
natural gas storage for the week to Oct. 16 rose 18 billion
cubic feet, as forecast in a Reuters poll. [ID:nEIA000830]

* The U.S. Labor Department said the number of mass layoff
actions -- defined as job cuts involving at least 50 people
from a single employer -- dropped by 129, to 2,561 in September
from August, affecting 248,006 workers. [ID:nN22139084]

* An index of the U.S. economy's prospects rose for a
sixth-straight month in September to a two-year high, the
Conference Board reported, suggesting the U.S. recovery was
building steam. [ID:nN22198158]

* Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp hub gasoline inventories fell
over the past week on exports opportunities to the United
States, also drawing down naphtha stocks, Dutch oil analyst
Pieter Kulsen said. [ID:nLM98732]

* U.S. Northeast temperatures are expected to average above
normal Thursday, then below normal through Sunday before
returning to near normal in the six- to 10-day outlook,
forecaster DTN Meteorlogix said. [ID:nDTN923]
(Reporting by Gene Ramos and Robert Gibbons; Editing by
Marguerita Choy)