By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Crude-oil prices climbed Friday, putting the commodity on a path to register a third straight monthly gain, on optimism over a global economic recovery and on heightened prospects for a rescue package for Greece. Crude for June delivery, the most active contract, added 29 cents to $85.46 a barrel on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, with prices within hailing distance of an 18-month high -- just above $87 a barrel -- reached in early April. June crude settled above the $85 mark for the first time in nearly a week on Thursday, rallying 2.3%. "Good industrial production data from Japan and South Korea underpinned expectations of increased interest for commodities and raw materials," said analysts at Action Economics. Government data released Thursday had Japan's core consumer price index falling 1.2% in March, as household spending and employment wages climbed, feeding hopes for a steady recovery. Read details of country's first rise in wages in 22 months. Energy traders also digested the Commerce Department's initial report on U.S. gross domestic product for the first quarter. On the corporate front, several analysts argue the $20 billion drop in the market capitalization of BP (BP 53.10, +0.54, +1.03%) since a major oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is disproportionate. Read about comparisons to that of the Valdex to Exxon Mobil.

Source