By Mark Shenk and Margot Habiby June 2 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose for the first time in three days as equities rallied after U.S. pending home sales topped economists’ estimates in April, bolstering optimism that the economic recovery will accelerate. “Any time there is a plus sign in front of the S&P, chances are oil will move higher,” said Tim Evans, an energy analyst at Citi Futures Perspective in New York. “The housing number is giving the S&P and oil a boost even though it doesn’t directly lead to much additional demand.” Crude oil for July delivery rose 82 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $73.40 a barrel at 11:47 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures have risen 7.1 percent in the past year. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 1 percent to 1,081.33, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 80.42 points, or 0.8 percent, to 10,104.44. The energy sector was the best-performing industry in the S&P 500, led by oil-services companies such as Halliburton Co. and Smith International Inc. The S&P 500 Energy Index climbed 2 percent, the biggest advance within 10 groups in the U.S. equity benchmark. It had fallen 18 percent between yesterday and April 23, shortly after the April 20 explosion at a BP Plc rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Home sales were projected to rise 5 percent in April after an originally reported gain of 5.3 percent in March, according to the median of 40 forecasts in the Bloomberg survey. Estimates ranged from a 3 percent drop to an increase of 10 percent. Euro Weakens Oil declined as much as 1.2 percent earlier today as the euro traded near a four-year low against the dollar, reducing the appeal of commodities as an alternative investment. The euro weakened to $1.2192 from $1.2229 yesterday in New York, when it touched $1.2111, the lowest level since April 2006. It slipped today on skepticism European nations will be able to trim budget deficits without harming the economic recovery. “The macro-economic picture, of which the euro is a part, continues to be a strong influence on prices,” said Christopher Bellew, senior broker at Bache Commodities Ltd. in London. “The market tends to be very volatile although maintaining a broad range of $72 to $75 a barrel.” Inventories The Energy Department is scheduled to release its weekly report at 11 a.m. tomorrow, a day later than usual because of the Memorial Day holiday. The industry-funded American Petroleum Institute is scheduled to release its supply report today, also a day late. “Some pretty upbeat data in the U.S. is holding up oil prices despite the bearish fundamentals,” said Phil Flynn, vice president of research at PFGBest in Chicago. Brent crude oil for July settlement rose 96 cents, 1.3 percent, to $73.67 a barrel on the London-based ICE Future Europe exchange. --With assistance from Alexander Kwiatkowski in London. Editors: Joe Link, Dan Stets To contact the reporters on this story: Mark Shenk in New York at mshenk1@bloomberg.net; Margot Habiby in Dallas at mhabiby@bloomberg.net. To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at dstets@bloomberg.net.

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