By Claudia Assis and Virginia Harrison, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Crude-oil futures turned higher Monday, getting a boost from data showing U.S. manufacturing expanding at a faster clip.
Crude oil for May delivery CLK2 +0.98% advanced 87 cents, or 0.8%, to $103.88 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after trading modestly lower earlier.
The contract briefly added to losses after the release of the Institute for Supply Management’s March manufacturing survey, but as stocks rose on the news, oil soon followed.
The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index rose to 53.4% last month from 52.4% in February. Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected the index to rise to 53.5%. A reading above 50% indicates expansion.
Crude oil advanced 0.2% on Friday, bringing quarterly gains to 4.2%. Speculation concerning the release of emergency oil supplies from several developed countries contributed to the bearish tone that gripped the oil market most of the last week, however.
“While the exact timing and quantity of the release remains an unknown, a strategic stock release of some sort — within or without the auspices of the International Energy Agency — seems highly likely over the next few months,” strategists at Barclays Capital said.
A “large part” of a potential stock release is already priced in, which “has been one of the key deterrents from prices moving higher,” the strategists said.
Data released on Sunday delivered a mixed picture on the growth outlook and potential energy demand in China.
An official survey on manufacturing showed a much better-than-expected improvement in March, while a rival survey from HSBC out the same day showed a weaker result. Read more about Chinese manufacturing.
European manufacturing data was in line with expectations and showed a contraction for the eight straight month.
“This mixed bag of information has crude heading lower, albeit moderately; focus to start the week is less on geopolitical tension, and more on data and its pointers for future oil demand,” said Matt Smith, an analyst with Summit Energy, in a note to clients.
Meanwhile, May gasoline RBK2 +1.42% added to gains, up 3 cents, or 1%, to trade at $3.34 a gallon. May heating oil HOK2 +1.46% turned positive, up 3 cents, or 1.1%, to $3.21 a gallon.
Natural gas continued to hover around 10-year lows, with the May contract NGK12 -1.41% off 2 cents, or 0.7%, to $2.11 per million British thermal units.
