Investing.com - Crude oil futures edged higher during U.S. morning hours on Monday, trading close to a two-week top as market players continued to assess the strength of the U.S. economy and future U.S. oil demand prospects.
The U.S. is the world’s biggest oil consuming country, responsible for almost 22% of global oil demand.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at USD93.54 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, up 0.6% on the day.
New York-traded oil prices rose by as much as 0.9% earlier in the session to hit a daily high of USD93.81 a barrel.
The National Association of Realtors said that its pending home sales index rose by 1.5% in March, beating expectations for a 1% gain.
The report came after the Commerce Department said U.S. consumer spending rose 0.2% in March, above expectations for a modest 0.1% increase. Personal spending rose by 0.7% in February.
The data eased concerns over the outlook for the U.S. economic recovery after data on Friday showed that the U.S. economy expanded by 2.5% in the first quarter, below expectations for 3% growth.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.4% to trade at 82.22, the weakest level since April 17.
Weakness in the U.S. currency often sparks bargain buying of dollar-denominated oil futures.
Market players now looked ahead to Wednesday’s policy statement from the U.S. central bank, for further hints regarding the future of the central bank’s monetary easing program.
Investors will also be awaiting the outcome of the European Central Bank’s policy meeting on Thursday, amid growing expectations for a rate cut, as well as Friday’s closely watched report on U.S. nonfarm payrolls.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery eased up 0.1% to trade at USD103.27 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD9.73 a barrel.
The gap between the contracts fell to the lowest level since January 2012, amid an improving production outlook in the North Sea and indications of declining stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for Nymex oil futures.
The U.S. is the world’s biggest oil consuming country, responsible for almost 22% of global oil demand.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at USD93.54 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, up 0.6% on the day.
New York-traded oil prices rose by as much as 0.9% earlier in the session to hit a daily high of USD93.81 a barrel.
The National Association of Realtors said that its pending home sales index rose by 1.5% in March, beating expectations for a 1% gain.
The report came after the Commerce Department said U.S. consumer spending rose 0.2% in March, above expectations for a modest 0.1% increase. Personal spending rose by 0.7% in February.
The data eased concerns over the outlook for the U.S. economic recovery after data on Friday showed that the U.S. economy expanded by 2.5% in the first quarter, below expectations for 3% growth.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.4% to trade at 82.22, the weakest level since April 17.
Weakness in the U.S. currency often sparks bargain buying of dollar-denominated oil futures.
Market players now looked ahead to Wednesday’s policy statement from the U.S. central bank, for further hints regarding the future of the central bank’s monetary easing program.
Investors will also be awaiting the outcome of the European Central Bank’s policy meeting on Thursday, amid growing expectations for a rate cut, as well as Friday’s closely watched report on U.S. nonfarm payrolls.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery eased up 0.1% to trade at USD103.27 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD9.73 a barrel.
The gap between the contracts fell to the lowest level since January 2012, amid an improving production outlook in the North Sea and indications of declining stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for Nymex oil futures.