U.S. crude oil futures slipped on Friday as a report that thousands more U.S. jobs were lost in March weighed on oil futures, which had jumped more than $4 in the previous session on optimism that G20 actions will help ease the current global economic crisis. The dollar reversed course and rose against the euro, which added to the pressure on crude. U.S. employers cut 663,000 jobs in March, lifting the unemployment rate to 8.5 percent, the highest since 1983, Labor Department data showed. The report revised January data to show job losses of 741,000, the biggest decline since October 1949. [ID:nN02368781] But sources noted that oil futures did not initially weaken after the jobs report and were resilient despite slipping. "The market is dipping, but still pretty resilient. Crude spiked higher overnight. The jobs data was better than consensus and supported stock markets, and energy initially bumped up slightly also," said Tom Bentz, an analyst at BNP Paribas Commodity Futures in New York. "The jobs report was apparently priced in and was pretty much in line with expectations," said Mike Fitzpatrick, vice president at MF Global in New York. PRICES * On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:13 a.m. EDT (1413 GMT), May crude CLK9 was down 61 cents, or 1.16 percent, at $52.03 a barrel, trading from $51.52 to $53.90. * In London, May Brent LCOK9 crude fell 25 cents, or 0.47 percent to $52.50 a barrel, trading from $51.89 to $54.26. * NYMEX May RBOB RBK9 seesawed near flat, down 0.13 cents, or 0.09 percent, to $1.4685 a gallon, trading from $1.4420 to $1.4799. * NYMEX May heating oil HOK9 fell 1.41 cents, or 0.98, percent, to $1.4250 a gallon, trading from $1.4091 to $1.4650. * The May/May RBOB crack spread <0#RB-CL=R> was at $9.74 a barrel. It ended at $9.22 on Thursday. The May/May heating oil crack spread <0#CL-HO=R> was at $7.83. It ended at $7.80 on Thursday. * The spread between the current front month and the five-year forward crude contract CLc61 was at $24.51, based on the May 2014 contract's Thursday settlement at $76.54. The spread ended at $23.90 on Thursday. TECHNICALS NYMEX crude 10-day/20-day moving average: $51.96/$49.76 Technical support/resistance: NYMEX crude: $50.54/$54.66 NYMEX heating oil: $1.3791/$1.4991 NYMEX RBOB: $1.4114/1.5282 For a report on technicals click [ID:nL3303322] MARKET NEWS * The Dow and S&P 500 stock indexes opened flat as data showed the labor market deteriorating further. [.N] * The U.S. dollar rose against most currencies as the jobs report dulled recent hopes of a nascent economic recovery and enhanced the greenback's safe-haven appeal. [USD/] * Business activity in the U.S. services sector shrank for a sixth straight month in March, according to a report on Friday from the Institute for Supply Management. [ID:nWEN6865] * The Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline was temporarily stopped due to a leak in the Iraqi section of the link. [ID:nIST003452] * French energy workers will strike for 24 hours on April 9, a union spokesman told Reuters Friday. [ID:nL3256815] * U.S. crude oil imports in January rose by 433,000 barrels per day, or 4.6 percent, from December, to 9.852 million bpd, but were still the lowest January level since 2006, according to the Energy Information Administration. [ID:nN02110995] * China's overall crude inventories at the end of February dropped 1.6 percent from the month before to 36.6 million tonnes, a Xinhua newsletter said.

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