Crude futures settled above 70 U.S. dollars a barrel on Tuesday, boosted by a weaker dollar and bullish U.S. government demand forecasts.

Light, sweet crude for July delivery jumped 1.92 dollars to settle at 70.01 dollars a barrel, the highest close since November, on the New York Mercantile Exchange, rallying on the news that the global demand was revised higher by the U.S. government.

In its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook released on Tuesday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) raised its forecast for 2009 global demand by 10,000 barrels per day from its May report, which supported the notion that the recession would end this year and demand would pick up.

In London, Brent crude for July delivery rose 1.74 dollars to settle at 69.62 dollars a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

(Xinhua News Agency June 10, 2009)