World oil prices jumped close to 80 dollars on Friday as traders welcomed news of stronger-than-expected economic growth in top energy consumer the United States. New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, rallied 1.47 dollars to 79.64 dollars a barrel, having touched 79.98 after publication of the data. London's Brent North Sea crude for April delivery soared 1.24 dollars to 76.53 dollars per barrel at about 1550 GMT. The US economy grew a robust 5.9 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, stronger than previously estimated and beating market expectations, revised government data showed Friday. The news gave a shot in the arm to oil prices because the United States is the world's biggest energy consuming nation. 'After some weak data earlier in the week, we've got some relatively strong data for a change, and that's definitely lending some support to the market,' said MF Global analyst Andy Lebow, cited by Dow Jones Newswires. Growth in US gross domestic product (GDP) -- a broad measure of the country's goods and services output -- had initially been estimated at a 5.7 percent annualized rate compared with the third quarter of 2009. The Commerce Department's upward revision surprised most analysts who had expected the second GDP estimate to remain unchanged. The powerful surge in the October-December quarter remained the strongest since 2003 and followed a 2.2 increase in GDP in the third quarter, the first economic growth after four consecutive quarters of contraction. Meanwhile, industry data showed Friday that US existing-home sales fell to their lowest level in seven months in January, highlighting ongoing woes for a sector that was at the epicenter of the financial crisis. Crude futures had fallen sharply on Thursday amid concern over economic recovery arising from US data and Greece's crisis-hit finances, as well as the stronger greenback. The market softened earlier this week on weak US figures -- rising weekly claims for jobless insurance benefits, plunging consumer confidence and more evidence of a sluggish housing market. The US Labor Department said Thursday that new claims for jobless benefits had jumped to a three-month high, raising doubts about the strength of the economic recovery. 'Oil will continually struggle if as long as the economic data disappoints,' said Capital Spreads analyst Simon Denham. 'Fewer jobs, means less income, means less driving, means less holidaying, means less use of oil,' he added. Meanwhile in Tokyo on Friday, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned that countries must brace for a return to wild oil price swings as the global economy recovers. Crude oil prices had surged to 147.50 dollars per barrel in July 2008 before tumbling to 35 dollars five months later in the eye of the global financial storm. 'Volatility has receded compared to the roller-coaster of 2007 and 2008,' Nobuo Tanaka told reporters on the sidelines of an energy forum in Tokyo. 'But the market could easily become again more volatile once the world economy grows again and the supply tightens.' Among factors that would induce volatility, Tanaka cited the absence of fruitful negotiations over tackling climate change as well as persistent uncertainty over the outlook of many economies. According to a scenario offered by the Paris-based IEA, which represents the energy interests of 28 developed economies, oil prices may climb to 100 dollars a barrel in 2020 and up to 200 dollars in 2030. 