U.S. crude roars above $119 on dollar, supply

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures surged to a record above $119 on Tuesday as the weak dollar and Nigerian and U.K. supply snags continued to lift crude and refined products futures to record highs.

"The trend is up and the market didn't break down when it moved lower in the morning, and you have the weak dollar and the supply disruptions are in the mix," said Eric Wittenauer, analyst at Wachovia Securities.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:17 p.m. EDT, May crude was up $1.96 or 1.67 percent at $119.44 a barrel, trading from $116.85 to a record $119.74, surging past Monday's $117.83 record peak.

The May contract expires on Tuesday.

In London, the front-month June Brent crude contract was up $1.81 or 1.58 percent at $116.24 a barrel, trading from $113.94 to $116.75.

Traders in London said buy stops were triggered near midday when prices in New York surged above $119.

NYMEX May RBOB was up 3.60 cents or 1.21 percent at $3.0151 per gallon, trading from $2.9556 to to a record $3.02, eclipsing Monday's $3.0040 record peak.

The RBOB crack spread on Tuesday was at $6.97 after ending at $7.64 on Monday.

May heating oil was up 2.49 cents or 0.75 percent at $3.3363 a gallon, trading from $3.2806 to a record $3.35, surpassing Monday's $3.3309 peak.

The heating oil crack spread on Tuesday was at $20.72 versus $21.60 on Monday.

The euro rallied against the dollar and traded above $1.60 for the first time since its 1999 inception amid growing expectations the European Central Bank's next move may be a hike in benchmark interest rates.

Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) said on Tuesday it stands by its previous statement that 169,000 barrels per day of Nigerian output were shut, responding after Nigeria's oil minister said the figure was too high.

Management and trade union officials at the Grangemouth refinery in Scotland were to meet on Tuesday for talks to avoid a strike planned at the weekend.

Refinery owner Ineos already started closing one of the refinery's three crude processing units.

China's implied oil demand rose 8 percent in March from the year-ago period, the fastest rate in 19 months, official data showed on Tuesday. Demand rose 6.2 percent in the first quarter.

Fog stopped Houston Ship Channel traffic on Tuesday morning after ship pilots determined visibility had dropped to unsafe levels, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

(Reporting by Robert Gibbons; Editing by David Gregorio)