NYMEX-Crude gains more ahead of OPEC, supply data

* OPEC expected to keep output steady at Thursday meeting

* Major U.S. equity indexes little changed, dollar gains

NEW YORK, May 27 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures rose
further at midday on Wednesday as oil markets expected OPEC
would not alter production levels when it meets Thursday and as
traders anticipated weekly inventory reports to show drawdowns
in domestic crude and gasoline supplies.

Gasoline futures rising to a fresh seven-month high and
tensions over North Korea were also supportive, countering the
bearish effect of the dollar's strength versus the euro.

"Gasoline has been leading the market higher here, and the
views from OPEC were also supportive. There was a flurry of
technical buying when front-month crude hit the 200-day moving
average," said Joe Possillico, a broker at MF Global.

A preliminary Reuters poll ahead of weekly inventory data
that begins to be rolled out later on Wednesday showed
forecasts for a drop of 1.1 million barrels in crude stocks and
a decline of 1.8 million barrels in gasoline stocks. [EIA/S]

The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventory
report at 4:30 p.m. EDT (2030 GMT), and the U.S. Energy
Information Administration will issue its data on Thursday, at
11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT).

PRICES

* On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:50 p.m. EDT
(1550 GMT), July crude CLN9 was up 98 cents, or 1.57 percent,
at $63.43 a barrel, trading from $62.19 to $63.82, the highest
intraday price since $65.56 was hit on Nov. 10.

* In London, July Brent crude LCON9 was up $1.18, or 1.93
percent, at $62.42 a barrel, trading from $60.99 to $62.75.

* NYMEX June RBOB RBM9 rose 3.25 cents, or 1.76 percent,
to $1.8849 a gallon, trading from $1.8484 to $1.8945.

* NYMEX June heating oil HOM9 rose 1.71 cents, or 1.11
percent, to $1.5624 a gallon, trading from $1.5350 to $1.5728.

* The July/July RBOB crack spread <0#RB-CL=R> was at
$14.25. It ended at $14.05 on Tuesday. The July/July heating
oil crack spread <0#CL-HO=R> was at $3.22. It ended at $3.53 on
Tuesday.

* The spread between the current front month and the
five-year forward crude contract CLc61 was at $12.72, based
on the July 2014 contract settlement on Tuesday at $76.15. The
spread ended at $13.70 on Tuesday.

TECHNICALS

NYMEX crude 10-day/20-day moving average: $60.19/$57.73

Technical support/resistance:

NYMEX crude: $62.00/$63.53

NYMEX heating oil: $1.5420/$1.5758

NYMEX RBOB: $1.8355/1.8669

For a report on technicals click [ID:nLR971737]

MARKET NEWS

* The dollar extended its gains versus the euro after a
report showed U.S. existing home sales rose in April. [USD/]

* The pace of U.S. existing home sales rose 2.9 percent in
April, according to a National Association of Realtors survey,
slightly above market expectations. [ID:nLR255963]

* OPEC ministers meet in Vienna on Thursday amid
expectations that output will be kept steady and improving
demand will help boost prices to $75 to $85 a barrel.
[ID:nLM346491]

* Japan's crude oil imports dropped 11.1 percent in April
from a year earlier, the sixth straight month of year-on-year
declines, Ministry of Finance data showed. [ID:nT279672]

* U.S. front-month crude prices CLc1 broke cleanly above
the key 200-day moving average of $62.17 on Wednesday for the
first time in more than eight months. [ID:nSIN159028]

* Sunoco Inc's (SUN.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Philadelphia refinery was without
gasoline output on Tuesday, after the larger of two fluidic
catalytic cracking units shut down due to an equipment
malfunction. [ID:nNN2651323]

* North Korea threatened to attack the South after it
joined a U.S.-led plan to check vessels suspected of carrying
equipment for weapons of mass destruction. [ID:nSP72126]
(Reporting by Gene Ramos and Robert Gibbons; Editing by Walter
Bagley)