Oil prices rose in midday trade here after falling sharply in the United States last week, with the market beginning to factor in expectations that US economic growth will continue to remain robust, dealers said. At 11:55 am (0355 GMT), New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in November, was at 61.99 usd a barrel, up 15 cents from its close of 61.84 usd in the United States last Friday. Prices steadied Friday, posting their first rise in six sessions but that still left the contract down 6.6 pct for the week. Prices had slumped last Thursday to their lowest point for more than two months on signs that energy demand was waning in the United States, the world's biggest consumer of energy. Some analysts said last week's better-than-expected US September payrolls data, showed the US economy remained robust, and this could push oil prices higher this week. US nonfarm payrolls fell by an estimated 35,000 in the month, the first decline in more than two years. However, the fall was much less than the 150,000 expected by Wall Street economists in the wake of the devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Dariusz Kowalczyk, a Hong Kong-based investment strategist with CFC Seymour Securities, said technically, the oil market is due for a rebound after falling dramatically last week. Moreover, there is also a fundamental basis for a turnaround, he said, citing signs that the impact of the hurricanes on the US economy was not as bad as earlier feared. "The nonfarm payroll data in the United States seems to show that the impact of the hurricane was not as strong as we had feared. Therefore, US growth should also remain strong in the fourth quarter and demand for oil will grow with it," Kowalczyk said. "There may be some slowdown (in the US economy) but the payroll data and other data suggest that the hurricanes have not hit the economy as badly as feared. Therefore we have to readjust (to a) higher outlook for demand." Prices are also expected to get a boost with the onset of the northern hemisphere winter, which is likely to drive demand for heating fuel. "The winter heating season is where demand peaks but there is little spare capacity on the supply side," he said