* Euro up versus dollar after recent battering * Monday holiday delays weekly oil inventory reports NEW YORK, Feb 16 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures rose more than 2 percent on Tuesday on the dollar's weakness against the euro, optimism fueling an equities rise and continuing tensions over Iran's nuclear program. "Crude and products futures advanced on light volume overnight as equities gained and the dollar drifted lower," Addison Armstrong, analyst at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut, said in a note. The euro edged up against the dollar, recovering some of recent losses, amid the view that the recent battering over Greek public finance issues may have gone too far. [USD/] European ministers told Greece it may need to take further steps to bring its debt under control. [ID:nLDE61F0XT] European shares gained after UK bank Barclays (BARC.L) beat profit forecasts. [MKTS/GLOB] U.S. stocks rose as corporate earnings and a solid jump in manufacturing data fueled investors' optimism. [.N] A gauge of manufacturing in New York state rose in February as inventories jumped, the New York Federal Reserve said in a report. The New York Fed's "Empire State" general business conditions index rose to 24.91 in February, the highest level since October and up from 15.92 in January. [ID:nN16239334] U.S. markets resumed after a federal holiday on Monday. Weekly oil inventory reports will be delayed. The American Petroleum Institute's report arrives Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. EST (2130 GMT). The U.S. Energy Information Administration's oil inventory report is due on Thursday at 11 a.m. EST (1600 GMT). The EIA natural gas storage report will arrive at its regular release time, 10:30 a.m. EST (1530 GMT) Thursday. PRICES * On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:03 a.m. EST (1503 GMT), March crude CLH0 was up $2.23, or 3.01 percent, at $76.36 a barrel, trading from $73.71 to $76.49. * NYMEX March crude oil options expire on Wednesday. The March futures contract expires on Feb. 22. * In London, April Brent crude LCOJ0 rose 2.56, or 3.53 percent, to $75.07 a barrel, trading from $72.55 to $75.14. * NYMEX March RBOB RBH0 rose 6.08 cents, or 3.15 percent, to $1.9903 a gallon, trading from $1.9186 to $1.9923. * NYMEX March heating oil HOH0 rose 6.11 cents, or 3.18 percent, to $1.98 a gallon, trading from $1.9080 to $1.9817. * The March/March heating oil crack spread <0#CL-HO=R> was at $6.76, after ending at $6.46 on Friday. The March/March RBOB crack spread <0#RB-CL=R> was at $7.14, after ending at $6.91 on Friday. * The spread between the current front month and the five-year forward crude contract CLc61 was at $10.64, based on the March 2015 contract Friday settlement at $87. The spread ended Friday at $12.87. TECHNICALS NYMEX crude 10-day/20-day moving average: $74.35/$74.76 Technical support/resistance: NYMEX crude: $73.70/$75.00 NYMEX heating oil: $1.9080/$1.9325 NYMEX RBOB: $1.9155/$1.9358 For a full report on technicals, click on [ID:] MARKET NEWS * President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that any country that tried to impose new sanctions on Iran would regret its actions, and talks were still going on over a proposed nuclear fuel swap. [ID:nLDE61F1JR] * Nigeria's acting president, Goodluck Jonathan, expects swift progress reviving an amnesty program in the oil-producing Niger Delta. [ID:nLDE61E28K] * For a list of U.S. refinery issues, click on [REF/US] (Reporting by Robert Gibbons; Editing by Walter Bagley)

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