* Asian shares, euro guarded as Athens strives to reach deal * U.S. crude and product stocks rise, crude imports drop * Iran says can hit US interests worldwide if attacked By Manash Goswami SINGAPORE, Feb 9 (Reuters) - Brent crude held near six-month highs above $117 on Thursday on hopes that demand would pick up as Greece inched closer to getting its debt crisis under control, while concerns over supply disruption from the Middle East provided support. Investors expected Europe to approve a plan to resolve Greece's debt crisis even as leaders in Athens stopped short of agreeing on the austerity measures. Meanwhile, geopolitical risks worsened as violence in Syria escalated and Iran renewed a threat against the United States. Front-month Brent gained 20 cents to $117.40 a barrel by 0738 GMT, rising for an eighth straight day. U.S. crude added 33 cents to reach $99.04 a barrel in its third day of increases. "There is hope that the Greek debt crisis will be sorted out soon with an agreement on all the components getting discussed," said Natalie Robertson, an analyst at ANZ bank. "On the supply side, there are a lot of risks at the moment and that will keep prices supported, particularly Brent." The supply risks and expectations of a revival in demand growth in Europe will push Brent prices higher, and that may keep the price difference with the U.S. benchmark wide for now, Robertson said. But the spread may narrow towards the second half of the year as the U.S. economy improves, she said. Brent's premium against U.S. crude was around $18 on Thursday. It touched an intraday high of $20.71 on Tuesday, the widest since October. CL-LCO1=R Oil markets face supply worries from Nigeria, while shipments from South Sudan have stopped due to a dispute over transit fees and revenue share with its neighbour Sudan. "Outside of Iran, there are fresh supply risks coming from Nigeria," Robertson said. "We already have a disruption from Sudan, and all these factors are supporting prices." STOCKPILES Crude stockpiles in the world's top consumer, the United States, rose much less than expected, while oil product inventories increased and gasoline demand slipped sharply from year-ago levels. Crude stocks rose 304,000 barrels to 339.25 million barrels in the week to Feb. 3, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported, sharply lower than the 2.4 million barrel build forecast in a Reuters poll. Nationwide distillate stockpiles gained 1.17 million barrels to 146.58 million barrels, while analysts had expected on average a drop of 700,000 barrels. Gasoline inventories rose 1.63 million barrels to 231.78 million barrels, more than forecasts for a 700,000 barrel increase. "A reported build in both crude and refined product inventories weighed on flat prices," analysts at BNP Paribas said in a note. "Relative to expectations, a distillate build was not expected and the extent of the gasoline build surprised to the upside." GREECE, DEMAND OUTLOOK Greece's Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said he hoped for a positive decision from the region's finance ministers on a bailout package even as the country's leaders failed to resolve one issue related to reform and austerity programme. "Greek political agreement on the austerity package details seems to have stalled around the issue of pensions," Ben Taylor, sales trader at CMC Market, said in a report. "However, the E.U. finance ministers may try to push their agenda in tonight's Brussels meeting." Investors also await forecasts for global oil demand from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries due later in the day and from the International Energy Agency on Friday. The U.S. EIA this week raised its 2012 and 2013 forecast for global oil demand growth and said supply would tighten as gains in non-OPEC output lag, adding support to oil futures. Brent will rise to $118.65 per barrel as indicated by its wave pattern, while U.S. oil will retrace to $97.77 per barrel, as it has failed a resistance at $99.59, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. (Reporting by Manash Goswami; Editing by Sugita Katyal & Jean Yoon)

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