4/1/07 LONDON (AFP) - World oil prices have climbed slightly, trading above 58 dollars before publication of official data on the level of US energy stockpiles and after plunging to six-week lows a day earlier.

On Wednesday, prices closed down nearly 3.0 dollars, or 4.5 percent, in New York and also tumbled in London to the lowest levels since mid-November, owing to reduced demand for heating fuel as the United States experiences warm winter temperatures, traders said Thursday.

On Thursday, New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in February, rose 14 cents to 58.46 dollars per barrel in electronic deals before the official opening of the US market.

The contract had plunged 2.73 dollars to close at 58.32 on Wednesday.

On Thursday in London, Brent North Sea crude for February delivery gained 28 cents to 58.24 dollars in electronic trading. It had closed down 2.48 dollars the day before.

Later Thursday the US        Department of Energy was to release its weekly report on energy stockpiles in the country.

"Oil was trading just above 58 dollars a barrel in both New York and London, pausing ahead of today's US inventories data... which is expected to show an increase in distillate and gasoline stocks and a decline in crude inventories," Sucden analyst Michael Davies said.

Last week traders had largely overlooked official US data showing that crude oil stockpiles slid by 8.1 million barrels, which was much higher than expected, in the week that ended December 22.

With the large drop due to one-off supply disruptions, the market preferred to focus on the more longer-term warm US winter.

Weather forecaster DTN Meteorlogix has predicted temperatures in the US northeast, the world's largest heating oil market, will be as much as eight degrees Celsius above normal this week.

Also, the US        National Weather Service has said demand for heating oil will be about 33 percent below normal this week.

"The milder weather could prove to be a major headache for        OPEC, which has already pledged to two production cuts totaling 1.7 million barrels per day in order to defend the 60 dollar a barrel level," Davies said on Thursday.

Elsewhere, traders were digesting news that the Joint Asian Derivatives Exchange (JADE) has received approval to launch a crude palm oil futures contract.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore gave its permission for launch of the exchange's second product, targeted to begin trade in the first quarter of the year, JADE said in a statement.

The Singapore Exchange and Chicago Board of Trade started the JADE derivatives market for Asian-based commodities last September with the TSR 20 Rubber Futures Contract.