NYMEX-Crude gains towards $82/bbl, near 8-week high

TOKYO, March 8 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures extended gains towards $82 a barrel on Monday, their highest in nearly eight weeks, in line with strong Asian shares and hopes for economic recovery in the world's top oil consumer.

FUNDAMENTALS

* NYMEX crude for April delivery <CLc1> was up 35 cents at $81.85 a barrel by 0037 GMT, after settling up $1.29 at $81.50 on Friday.

It rose as high as $82.07 on Friday, its highest since Jan. 12.

* Friday's gains came as Wall Street rose, after a report showed the United States lost fewer jobs than expected in February, boosting economic recovery hopes.

* Money managers extended their net long crude oil futures position on the New York Mercantile Exchange in the week through March 2, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission said on Friday. [ID:nN05242375]

* The key speculator group hiked net long positions to 144,058 during the week, up from 132,504 in the week to Feb. 23 (see table below).

* Oil producers are pumping more crude than consumers need but the oversupply is insufficient to have a big impact on the market, Iran's OPEC governor said on Sunday. [ID:nLDE6260ER]

"There is some oversupply in the market," Mohammad Ali Khatibi told Reuters in a telephone interview. "But it cannot damage the market. It can be absorbed into stocks."

* Ecuador's oil minister Germanico Pinto told Reuters on Friday that there was no need for an output cut at OPEC's March 17 meeting and that crude prices were "relatively stable."

* Pinto, who holds the rotating presidency of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries this year, said that there was no plan to cut back production at the upcoming meeting in Vienna.

MARKETS NEWS

* Japan's Nikkei stock average and South Korea's shares opened up more than 1 percent on Monday after the U.S. jobs data, with exporters benefiting from a weaker yen and resource shares from gains in commodities prices.

* U.S. stocks jumped and the Nasdaq hit an 18-month closing high on Friday.

* The yen was broadly under pressure on Monday, while demand for higher-yielding currencies was robust. [USD/]

DATA/EVENTS

* The following data is expected on Monday:

- 0930 GMT--Euro Zone Sentix Index/March

- 1500 GMT--U.S. Employment Trends/Feb

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PRICES Oil prices as of 0037 GMT Contract Mnth Price Change Day ago pct MA-20* NYMEX Contracts US Crude APR0 $81.85 +0.35 +$1.29 +1.61% $77.59 Heat Oil APR0 211.00 +1.26 +2.87 +1.39% 200.77 RBOB APR0 228.62 +1.52 +3.73 +1.67% 205.77 Natgas APR0 $4.521 -0.072 +$0.018 +0.39% $5.033 ICE Contracts Brent APR0 $80.25 +0.36 +$1.35 +1.72% $76.09 Gasoil MAR0 $651.75 +0.25 +$9.50 +1.48% $614.44 Note: U.S. heating oil and RBOB gasoline contracts listed in cents per gallon. * = 20-day moving average for continuation month. (Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Joseph Radford)