NYMEX-Oil extends gains above $80, eyes dollar, Iran

 PERTH, Feb 22 (Reuters) - U.S. oil prices rose above $80 a
barrel on Monday, extending the previous session's gains,
supported by a weaker U.S. dollar, refinery strikes in France
and escalating tensions about Iran's nuclear program.

 FUNDAMENTALS

 * NYMEX crude for March delivery CLc1 rose 29 cents to
$80.10 a barrel by 0006 GMT. The contract rose 75 cents to
settle at $79.81 a barrel on Friday, marking a 7.7 percent rise
for the week, the highest one-week percentage gain for
front-month crude since October.

 * Talks between Total TOTF.PA and workers protesting the
possible closure of the company's Dunkirk refinery in northern
France collapsed on Sunday, the CGT union said, calling for a
strike to spread to all French refineries. [ID:nLDE61K0GJ]

 * Russia said on Friday it was "very alarmed" by Iran's
failure to cooperate with the IAEA, after the U.N. nuclear
agency said it feared Tehran might be working to develop a
nuclear missile. [ID:nLDE61I10U]

 * OPEC is unlikely to raise its output ceiling at its next
meeting in March, a senior Iranian oil official said on
Saturday, adding that oil demand is expected to rise in the
second half of this year. [ID:nLDE61J06V]

 * Money managers hiked their net long crude oil futures
position on the New York Mercantile Exchange in the week
through Feb. 16, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission said
on Friday. [ID:nN1956934]

 MARKETS NEWS

 * The U.S. dollar slipped on Monday, as investors
reassessed chances of a earlier-than-expected interest rate
hike by the Federal Reserve while the euro was lifted by
speculation of a quick bailout for Greece. [USD/]

 * The Federal Reserve on Friday poured more cold water on
speculation that a surprise rise in its emergency lending rate
signaled it was moving faster to rein in its easy money
policies. [ID:nN19113048]

 *  U.S. stocks rose on Friday as investors took the Federal
Reserve's discount rate increase as evidence the financial
system is healing but worried the eventual withdrawal of easy
money will hurt Wall Street. [.N]

 DATA/EVENTS

 * The following data is expected on Monday:

 -- US National Activity Index for Jan (0830 GMT)

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 (Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by Himani Sarkar)