By Matt Day Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Crude-oil futures held steady on Friday after taking a brief dip below $72 a barrel on weak but largely expected U.S. jobs data. Prices rose above levels seen just before the release of the widely anticipated June nonfarm payrolls report. The benchmark crude-oil contract, for August delivery, recently traded 0.2% higher at $73.09 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Following the report's release, crude futures fell as low as $71.70. "Surprisingly, crude sold off at first, but now it seems to be recovering as it reassesses a little bit," said Andy Lebow, senior vice president of energy at MF Global in New York. "The market has lost a lot of ground this week. It may be trying to find some support." Nonfarm payrolls dropped by 125,000 last month compared with economists' expectations for a 110,000 decline, largely due to layoffs of temporary government workers hired for the 2010 census. Crude oil prices remain within the $65-$90 band that is considered to be a kind of equilibrium for the world's producers and consumers. If oil were to settle below $72 a barrel on Friday, it would be the first time since June 8. August North Sea Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange traded 34 cents, or 0.5% lower, at $72 a barrel. Crude prices Thursday plunged 3.5% in a rout across many commodities on a wave of weak U.S. economic reports. Disappointing U.S. home sales and construction spending, and speculation about a slowdown in Chinese growth renewed fears of a double-dip recession. Oil futures have dropped for four consecutive days, the longest losing streak since euro-zone debt woes sent prices down 21% during a 13-day stretch in May. Since setting an intra-day high of $79.38 a barrel Monday, dour economic sentiment and pressure from a well-supplied market have sent prices down more than 8%, or $6 a barrel. Traders have been looking to U.S. jobs data to gauge the strength of the economic recovery. Increased employment is seen boosting gasoline demand on a jump in commuting and related increases in economic activity. U.S. oil stockpiles also remain above their five-year averages during the summer driving season as demand has continued to disappoint. Front-month August reformulated gasoline blendstock, or RBOB, recently traded 1.25 cents, 0.6% lower, at $1.9851. The contract's low of $1.9663 is its lowest intra-day level since May 27. August heating oil traded 0.38 cents, or 0.2% lower, at $1.9347 a gallon. Heating oil also hit its lowest intra-day price since May 27, at $1.9212 a gallon. -By Matt Day, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-4986; matthew.day2@dowjones.com.

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