Oil up more than 2 pct on broad market rally - BusinessWeek

Oil jumped to the highest level in more than a week alongside a broad rally on Wall Street and a report that Japan's economy contracted less than feared in the months after the earthquake and tsunami in March.

Monday's 2.6 percent rise, to more than $87 per barrel, all but erased losses from a roller coaster ride in oil markets last week. The benchmark price tumbled last Tuesday to its lowest level this year, though its current trading range of between $80 and $90 per barrel is still well above last year's average of $79.64 per barrel.

That means gasoline pump prices should remain higher than last year's levels. The national average fell less than a penny on Monday to $3.594 per gallon, according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. A gallon of regular is 8 cents cheaper than it was a month ago, but it's still about 84 cents higher than it was last year.

Oil fell last week after a downgrade of the U.S. credit rating by S&P sparked the most volatile week on Wall Street since November 2008. Then crude moved sharply higher following positive jobs news in the U.S. and an announcement by the Federal Reserve that it will keep lending rates low.

via businessweek.com