* Unrest in Middle East, Libya fight supports oil * Portugal, euro zone debt woes limit gains * U.S. durable goods orders fall in Feb, weigh on oil * Coming up: EIA natgas data at 10:30 a.m. EDT Thurs NEW YORK, March 24 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures edged up on Thursday in choppy trading as Middle East unrest and the Libya conflict and concerns about supply disruption supported prices while euro zone debt problems weighed on Brent prices. U.S. crude prices briefly turned negative and trading was choppy after a report showed U.S. February durable goods orders fell against expectations the data would show a small rise. The durable goods report offset a separate report showing U.S. initial jobless claims fell. [ID:nCLAOEE7CM] [ID:nOAT004768] U.S. crude prices were attempting to hold on to gains after its Wednesday settlement at a 2-1/2-year peak after attacks on Israel escalated Middle East geopolitical risk already high amid unrest and protests in Yemen, Bahrain, and Syria. The Wednesday price strength was despite rising U.S. crude oil stocks, following strong gasoline futures on the government's report showing a sharp drop in U.S. gasoline inventories last week. Brent crude's weakness on Thursday was attributed to concerns about euro zone debt problems and concerns about economic growth. FUNDAMENTALS * On the New York Mercantile Exchange, May crude CLK1 rose 22 cents, or 0.2 percent to $105.97 a barrel by 9:14 a.m. EDT (1314 GMT), trading from $105.11 to $106.69. * New orders U.S. durable manufactured goods unexpectedly fell in February after a strong showing in January, a government report showed. [ID:nN24115313] * New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits fell as expected last week, with the four-week moving average dropping to it lowest level in more than 2-1/2 years. [ID:nOAT004768] * Portugal is unlikely to ask the European Union for a financial bailout during an EU leaders' summit, but it cannot be ruled out, an EU source said. [ID:nLDE72N0VV] * Western warplanes hit Libyan tanks on a fifth night of airstrikes but failed to stop Muammar Gaddafi's forces shelling rebel-held towns in the west or dislodge his armor in the east. [ID:nLDE72N006] * Presidential guards loyal to Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh clashed in the town of Mukalla with army units backing opposition groups and protesters demanding his ouster. [ID:nLDE72N0O4] * The main hospital in the Syrian city of Deraa has received the bodies of at least 25 protesters who died in confrontations with security forces, a hospital official said. [ID:nLDE72N0PO] MARKETS NEWS * Dow and S&P index futures pared gains following data on jobless claims and February durable goods orders. Futures remained in positive territory, though light trading volume suggested that optimism was limited in scope. [.N] * The euro rebounded from an early fall, amid Middle-East and sovereign buying, with worries over Portugal's political crisis and the health of the Spanish banking system increasingly factored in to the currency. [USD/] * Global stocks crept back to where they were before Japan's earthquake and tsunami amid confidence over economic recovery. [MKTS/GLOB] [.N] * Gold climbed amid violence in the Mideast and jitters over the euro zone. [GOL/] UPCOMING DATA/EVENTS * U.S. Energy Information Administration weekly natural gas storage data released at 10:30 a.m. EDT (1430 GMT) on Thursday. 9:14 LAST NET PCT LOW HIGH CURRENT DAY AGO CHNG CHNG VOL VOL CLc1 105.97 0.22 0.2% 105.11 106.69 54,398 31,920 CLc2 106.39 0.18 0.2% 105.60 107.14 20,312 303,365 LCOc1 114.76 -0.80 -0.7% 114.50 115.92 59,033 133,351 RBc1 3.0007 -0.0206 -0.7% 2.9909 3.0275 1,397 29,192 RBc2 3.0090 -0.0196 -0.7% 2.9988 3.0354 4,274 39,801 HOc1 3.0196 -0.0354 -1.2% 3.0147 3.07 2,732 21,890 HOc2 3.0376 -0.0343 -1.1% 3.0320 3.0871 7,054 35,558 * NYMEX crude oil for May CLc1 rose 22 cents to $105.97 a barrel by 9:14 a.m. in volume of 54,398 lots. (Reporting by Robert Gibbons; Editing by John Picinich)

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