OIL rose above US$93 a barrel for the first time in two weeks yesterday, as the latest data on US unemployment claims suggested job growth may pick up from last month's sluggish pace.

Benchmark oil for June delivery rose US$2.21 to close at US$93.64 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil fell to a year low of US$86.68 a barrel last week, but has since risen for six straight days, increasing US$6.96, or 8 percent.

Yesterday morning, the Labor Department said the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week to a seasonally adjusted 339,000, the second-fewest in more than five years. The drop suggests that layoffs have declined, which is a positive sign for gasoline demand.

Brent crude, which is used to price oil used by many US refiners, rose US$1.68 to US$103.41 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

In other energy futures trading on the Nymex:

- Gasoline rose 6 cents to US$2.81 per gallon.

- Heating oil added 6 cents to US$2.90 a gallon.

- Natural gas was flat at US$4.17 per 1,000 cubic feet.