Crude oil traded little changed as Exxon Mobil Corp. and workers attempted to end a strike that's cut output from the U.S.'s fifth-biggest supplier.
Exxon will resume talks today with the Petroleum & Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, union official Olusola George-Olumoroti said. The seven-day strike has cut crude output by 860,000 barrels a day. Oil pared earlier gains as the dollar rose, limiting the appeal of commodities as an inflation hedge.

"Events like Nigeria remind the market of the reality of tight spare capacity as the market heads into the driving season," said Harry Tchilinguirian, senior analyst at BNP Paribas SA in London.

Crude oil for June delivery traded for $113.23 a barrel, 22 cents lower, on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 11:49 a.m. London time. It earlier climbed as much as $1.77, or 1.6 percent, to $115.23 a barrel.

Yesterday, prices dropped to $113.46 a barrel, the lowest close since April 14. Futures, which have gained 76 percent in the past year, touched a record $119.93 a barrel on April 28.

The dollar rose to the highest level in five weeks versus the euro after the Federal Reserve signaled it may pause cutting interest rates after a quarter-point reduction yesterday.

"There is no doubt that the greenback is still influencing the oil market," said Audrey Kryuchenkov, an analyst at Sucden (U.K.) Ltd. in London. "Further strengthening in the dollar could still weigh on crude prices."

U.S. Stockpiles

Rising U.S. crude oil supplies also kept price gains in check. Crude inventories nationwide climbed 3.85 million barrels to 319.9 million barrels last week, according to a report from the Energy Department yesterday. A 900,000-barrel-gain was forecast by 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.

Brent crude oil for June settlement was at $111.15, 11 cents lower, at 11:49 a.m. London time on the ICE Futures Europe exchange. Earlier, it gained as much as $1.38, or 1.2 percent, to $112.74 a barrel.

Many countries in Europe and Asia are closed today for public holidays.

The Nigerian strike, combined with militant attacks against four crude pipelines operated by a Royal Dutch Shell Plc venture, has cut Nigerian oil output by about 50 percent, allowing Angola to overtake the country as Africa's biggest producer