U.S. crude futures settle higher after jobs report

NEW YORK, March 5 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures settled 1.6 percent higher on Friday, hitting nearly an eight-week high intraday after a report that non-farm payrolls in the United States fell less than expected in February helped boost optimism about economic recovery.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, April <CLJ0> crude rose $1.29, or 1.61 percent, to settle at $81.04 a barrel, trading from $80.47 to $82.07, highest front-month crude price since $82.34 was struck on Jan. 12. (Reporting by Robert Gibbons; Editing by John Picinich)