Oil Climbs to 3-Week High
NEW YORK -- Crude-oil futures rose to a three-week high, bolstered by restored confidence in the global economic recovery and the potential interruption of crude imports to the U.S. Gulf Coast by a huge oil spill.</br></br>Light, sweet crude for June delivery gained 98 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at $86.15 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, just below the 2010 settlement high of $86.84 a barrel on April 6. It gained 2.9% for April, its third consecutive monthly rise.</br></br>Oil rose as the dollar continued to back off a one-year high against the euro hit Wednesday. The euro rose after Greece accepted new austerity measures as a condition of getting aid from the European Union and International Monetary Fund.</br></br>Investors also were encouraged by a 3.2% expansion in first-quarter U.S. gross domestic product.</br></br>While slightly below the consensus forecast, the increase was fueled by stronger consumer spending, a positive indicator for future growth.