WSJ:OIL FUTURES: Crude Oil Higher In Thin Holiday Trading
-- Crude futures slightly higher but volumes low as many investors, money managers not trading
-- Crude futures may gain strength if Italian business confidence and German CPI data are favorable-analyst
-- Investors look to U.S. Case-Shiller Home Price Index later Tuesday
By Jenny Gross
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
LONDON (Dow Jones)--Crude oil futures were slightly higher Tuesday in thin trading as many market participants weren't trading because of a public holiday in London.
At 1100 GMT, the front-month February Brent contract on London's ICE futures exchange was up 37 cents, or 0.3%, at $108.33 a barrel.
The front-month February contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was trading up 8 cents at $99.76 per barrel.
Brent crude and Nymex prices traded in a narrow range as volumes were low. Oil prices traded higher on both sides of the Atlantic, but Nymex prices kept below the key $100 a barrel mark, which was breached last week after the U.S. Labor Department said Thursday that new jobless claims fell to their lowest level since April 2008.
"The main thing to consider this week will be the lack of trading volume," said Olivier Jakob, an analyst at Petromatrix, in a note Tuesday. Investors are waiting for Standard & Poor's to announce which European countries it will downgrade, he said.
Stephen Schork, editor of the Schork Report, said in a note Tuesday that he expects Brent crude futures to regain strength relative to Nymex futures if this week's Italian Business Confidence Index and German Consumer Price Index data are positive and send good signals about European demand.
From a technical standpoint, Schork said the Nymex contract needed to break the $100 a barrel level to gain momentum. Brent crude will have to close above $109.30 a barrel this week in order to break it's downside pattern, he said.
Investors will look to the U.S. Case-Shiller Home Price Index, the Richmond and Dallas manufacturing survey and the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index later Tuesday. On Thursday, U.S. pending home sales data will be released and on Friday, German CPI and the Chinese HSBC Purchasing Managers Index may give cues on market direction.
At 1100 GMT, the ICE's gasoil contract for December delivery was up $5.50, or 0.6%, at $920.00 per metric ton, while Nymex gasoline for January delivery was down 63 points, or 0.2%, at $2.6809 per gallon.
-By Jenny Gross, Dow Jones Newswires; 4420-7842-9239; jenny.gross@dowjones.com
