Investing.com - Crude oil futures turned lower in choppy trade during U.S. morning hours on Monday, after data showed that U.S. existing home sales fell unexpectedly in March, while the previous month’s figure was revised lower.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in May traded at USD88.00 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, little changed on the day.
The May contract was up by as much as 1% earlier in the session to hit a daily high of USD89.13 a barrel. Nymex oil prices fell to a four-month low of USD85.60 a barrel on April 18.
The May crude contract is due to expire at the end of Monday’s trading session. Contract expiration often leads to volatile sessions as market participants look to close out positions or reposition their portfolios.
Meanwhile, the more actively traded contract for June delivery was down 0.1% to trade at USD88.27 a barrel.
The National Association of Realtors said in a report released earlier that existing home sales fell 0.6% to a seasonally adjusted 4.92 million units in March from February’s revised total of 4.95 million.
February existing home sales were initially reported at 4.98 million units.
Analysts had expected U.S. existing home sales to rise 0.5% to 5.01 million units in March.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery was up 0.2% to trade at USD99.83 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD11.56 a barrel.
London-traded Brent prices fell to a nine-month low of USD96.76 a barrel on April 18.
The European benchmark has been under heavy selling pressure in recent sessions, amid growing concerns over the euro zone’s economic outlook.
The IMF said last week that the euro zone remains the weakest part of the global economy. The 17 countries using the euro accounted for about 12% of world demand last year.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in May traded at USD88.00 a barrel during U.S. morning trade, little changed on the day.
The May contract was up by as much as 1% earlier in the session to hit a daily high of USD89.13 a barrel. Nymex oil prices fell to a four-month low of USD85.60 a barrel on April 18.
The May crude contract is due to expire at the end of Monday’s trading session. Contract expiration often leads to volatile sessions as market participants look to close out positions or reposition their portfolios.
Meanwhile, the more actively traded contract for June delivery was down 0.1% to trade at USD88.27 a barrel.
The National Association of Realtors said in a report released earlier that existing home sales fell 0.6% to a seasonally adjusted 4.92 million units in March from February’s revised total of 4.95 million.
February existing home sales were initially reported at 4.98 million units.
Analysts had expected U.S. existing home sales to rise 0.5% to 5.01 million units in March.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for June delivery was up 0.2% to trade at USD99.83 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD11.56 a barrel.
London-traded Brent prices fell to a nine-month low of USD96.76 a barrel on April 18.
The European benchmark has been under heavy selling pressure in recent sessions, amid growing concerns over the euro zone’s economic outlook.
The IMF said last week that the euro zone remains the weakest part of the global economy. The 17 countries using the euro accounted for about 12% of world demand last year.