Investing.com - Crude oil futures were higher during U.S. morning trade on Tuesday, adding to gains following the release of broadly weaker-than-expected U.S. economic data on housing and consumer confidence.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at USD103.81 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, gaining 0.65%.
It earlier rose by as much as 0.95% to trade at USD104.09 a barrel, the highest since April 20.
Oil prices extended gains after official data showed that U.S. new home sales fell less-than-expected in March, while the previous month’s figure was revised higher.
The U.S. Census Bureau said new home sales fell by 7.1% to a seasonally adjusted 328,000 units in March, compared to expectations for a decline to 320,000.
New home sales for February were revised up to 353,000 units from a previously reported 313,000 units.
The data came on the heels of an industry report showing that U.S. home prices fell to the lowest level since 2002 in February.
Standard & Poor’s with Case-Shiller said its house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.5% in February from a year earlier, compared to expectations for a 3.4% decline.
Month-on-month, U.S. home prices dipped 0.8% in February, worse than expectations for a modest 0.2% decline.
Another report showed that U.S. consumer confidence declined unexpectedly in April, moving further off February’s 12-month high.
The Conference Board, a market research group said its index of consumer confidence dipped by to 69.2 from a downwardly revised reading of 69.5 in March. Analysts had expected the index to ease up to 69.7 in April.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.28% to trade at 79.26, the lowest since April 3.
Oil prices typically strengthen when the U.S. currency weakens as the dollar-priced commodity becomes cheaper for holders of other currencies.
Oil traders were now looking ahead to a meeting of Federal Reserve policymakers on Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss the economy and monetary policy.
Traders are hoping there might be some show of support for a third round of bond purchases, dubbed quantitative easing III or QE3, to support the U.S. economy.
Meanwhile, market participants continued to monitor developments surrounding the euro zone’s ongoing debt crisis.
Risk sentiment found support after a successful auction of Dutch government debt earlier, but fears over the euro zone’s debt crisis lingered after Spain and Italy saw borrowing costs jump following government bond sales.
Bond auctions have become key drivers of risk sentiment in recent months, as traders attempt to gauge the ability of indebted euro zone nations to fund themselves.
Oil traders were also awaiting fresh weekly information on U.S. stockpiles of crude and refined products to gauge the strength of oil demand in the world’s largest oil consumer.
The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventories report later in the day, while Wednesday’s government report could show crude stockpiles rose by 2.9 million barrels last week to the highest level since May, underscoring fears over a slowdown in oil demand from the U.S.
The U.S. is the world’s biggest oil-consuming country, responsible for almost 22% of global oil demand.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery shed 0.2% to trade at 118.47 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD14.66.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at USD103.81 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, gaining 0.65%.
It earlier rose by as much as 0.95% to trade at USD104.09 a barrel, the highest since April 20.
Oil prices extended gains after official data showed that U.S. new home sales fell less-than-expected in March, while the previous month’s figure was revised higher.
The U.S. Census Bureau said new home sales fell by 7.1% to a seasonally adjusted 328,000 units in March, compared to expectations for a decline to 320,000.
New home sales for February were revised up to 353,000 units from a previously reported 313,000 units.
The data came on the heels of an industry report showing that U.S. home prices fell to the lowest level since 2002 in February.
Standard & Poor’s with Case-Shiller said its house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.5% in February from a year earlier, compared to expectations for a 3.4% decline.
Month-on-month, U.S. home prices dipped 0.8% in February, worse than expectations for a modest 0.2% decline.
Another report showed that U.S. consumer confidence declined unexpectedly in April, moving further off February’s 12-month high.
The Conference Board, a market research group said its index of consumer confidence dipped by to 69.2 from a downwardly revised reading of 69.5 in March. Analysts had expected the index to ease up to 69.7 in April.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.28% to trade at 79.26, the lowest since April 3.
Oil prices typically strengthen when the U.S. currency weakens as the dollar-priced commodity becomes cheaper for holders of other currencies.
Oil traders were now looking ahead to a meeting of Federal Reserve policymakers on Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss the economy and monetary policy.
Traders are hoping there might be some show of support for a third round of bond purchases, dubbed quantitative easing III or QE3, to support the U.S. economy.
Meanwhile, market participants continued to monitor developments surrounding the euro zone’s ongoing debt crisis.
Risk sentiment found support after a successful auction of Dutch government debt earlier, but fears over the euro zone’s debt crisis lingered after Spain and Italy saw borrowing costs jump following government bond sales.
Bond auctions have become key drivers of risk sentiment in recent months, as traders attempt to gauge the ability of indebted euro zone nations to fund themselves.
Oil traders were also awaiting fresh weekly information on U.S. stockpiles of crude and refined products to gauge the strength of oil demand in the world’s largest oil consumer.
The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventories report later in the day, while Wednesday’s government report could show crude stockpiles rose by 2.9 million barrels last week to the highest level since May, underscoring fears over a slowdown in oil demand from the U.S.
The U.S. is the world’s biggest oil-consuming country, responsible for almost 22% of global oil demand.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery shed 0.2% to trade at 118.47 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD14.66.