Crude Jumps To $90 Barrel During A Recession

(Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures prices
rose sharply on Tuesday, pushing above $90 a barrel for the
first time in 26 months as cold weather boosting fuel demand
and the dollar's weakness kept oil lifted.

Optimism that Ireland will pass an austerity budget on
Tuesday helped lift the euro against the dollar.

U.S. stock futures were boosted by a deal struck by U.S.
President Barack Obama with Republicans to extend Bush-era tax
breaks for two years.

Northwest and northeast Europe are expected to continue to
have below normal temperatures and above normal energy demand
the next several days. [ID:nDTN826]

U.S. heating demand was forecast at 16.3 percent above
normal for the week to Dec. 11, according to the U.S. National
Weather Service on Monday. Heating oil demand was forecast at
16.1 percent above normal. [ID:nN07DD]

Oil investors also will be anticipating weekly oil
inventory reports, starting with a report from industry late on
Tuesday.

U.S. crude stockpiles are expected to have fallen last week
as refiners limited imports, according to a preliminary Reuters
survey of analysts on Monday. [ID:nN06226217]

FUNDAMENTALS

* On the New York Mercantile Exchange, January crude CLF1
rose $1.33, or 1.5 percent, to $90.71 a barrel at 8:53 a.m. EST
(1353 GMT), trading from $88.80 to $90.76.

* Iran's OPEC governor described the world oil market as
balanced, with the current price of around $90 a result of
supply being in line with demand, the Oil Ministry news agency
Shana reported on Tuesday. [ID:nMOS740889]

* In a separate interview published on Tuesday, Khatibi
said the increase in the oil price still did not reflect the
fall in value of the dollar over recent months and predicted
that oil would reach $100 in the near future. [ID:nLDE6B60EC]

* German manufacturing orders rose by 1.6 percent on the
month in October, despite a fall in euro zone demand. The
mid-range forecast in a Reuters poll was for a 2-percent rise
after a 4-percent fall in September. [ID:nLDE6351EI]

MARKETS NEWS

* Global equities were boosted by a compromise deal to
extend expiring U.S. tax cuts, while the euro rose on optimism
that Irish lawmakers will pass its toughest ever budget later
in the day. [MKTS/GLOB]

* Gold hit its second consecutive record high as the dollar
fell, also driven by year-end fund buying, the prospect of more
U.S. monetary easing and investor nervousness over the European
debt crisis. Silver hit a 30-year high for the seventh
consecutive day.