Oil traded near the highest price in three weeks in New York on speculation that fuel demand may increase after U.S. jobless claims fell and Greek politicians agreed on measures needed to qualify for international aid.

Futures were little changed, heading for a weekly gain, after advancing for a third day yesterday in the longest winning streak this year. U.S. applications for jobless benefits slid by 15,000 to 358,000 in the week ended Feb. 4, according to the Labor Department. The Greek government agreed with political party leaders on austerity measures needed to qualify for the financing package, an e-mailed statement from Prime Minister Lucas Papademos’s office in Athens showed.

Oil for March delivery was at $99.75 a barrel, down 9 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:21 a.m. Sydney time. The contract yesterday rose 1.1 percent to $99.84, the highest close since Jan. 19. Prices are up 2 percent this week and 15 percent higher the past year.

Brent oil for March settlement climbed $1.39, or 1.2 percent, to $118.59 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange yesterday. The European benchmark contract’s premium to New York-traded West Texas Intermediate closed at $18.75.

Greece must still pass its latest austerity package into law and identify 325 million euros in spending cuts before euro- area governments endorse a second bailout for the country, Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ben Sharples in Melbourne at bsharples@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alexander Kwiatkowski in Singapore at akwiatkowsk2@bloomberg.net

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