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Oil topped 80 dollars a barrel in Asian trade Monday as a strike at French energy giant Total and concerns over Iran's nuclear programme rattled the market, analysts said.
New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March, was up 63 cents at 80.44 dollars a barrel in morning trade. Brent North Sea crude for April delivery gained 61 cents to 78.80 dollars.
"The sentiment is quite bullish at this time because of the refinery strikes in France and the concerns over Iran's nuclear issues," said Victor Shum, senior principal at Purvin and Gertz energy consultants in Singapore.
On Sunday, drivers on France rushed to fill their tanks ahead of the travel-intensive mid-term school holidays amid fears of petrol shortages.
Tensions between crude-exporter Iran and the West over Tehran's alleged nuclear weapons ambitions also helped boost prices, analysts said.
