LONDON--Crude-oil futures were little changed Tuesday in choppy trade as China's better-than-expected manufacturing activity figures were counter-balanced by a new set of downbeat news from the euro zone.
At 1103 GMT, the front-month September Brent contract on London's ICE futures exchange was 24 cents, or 0.2%, lower at $103.02 a barrel. The front-month September contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was trading down 15 cents, or 0.2%, at $87.99 per barrel.
Overnight data from China showed that manufacturing activity in the world's second-largest oil consumer shrank less in July than forecast by analysts.
"It's hard to call these numbers very bullish [for the oil market], but they are definitely less bearish," said Torbjorn Kjus, oil market analyst at DnB NOR.
"The preliminary purchasing managers' indices from the euro zone, on the other hand, remain persistently at recession level and are thus likely to counter any stronger price recovery," Commerzbank said in a note.
Worries that a sharp economic slowdown would cut global demand for oil have pressured crude futures for months.
At 1300 GMT, the U.S. July manufacturing activity data will be published, and the numbers could move oil prices significantly as the U.S. is the world's largest oil consumer, Mr. Kjus said.
Market participants will also focus on a weekly U.S. oil inventories survey published by the American Petroleum Institute, an industry body, at 2030 GMT.
"If Brent can hold to $102.50 a barrel, then it can still hope at another attempt on $105 a barrel," Petromatrix said in a note.
But if the $102.50-a-barrel level can't hold, then Brent will have to move back to $100.75 a barrel for a strong line of support, before the $100-a-barrel level, it said.
At 1103 GMT, the ICE's gasoil contract for August delivery was down $7.50, or 0.9%, at $887.25 per metric ton, while Nymex gasoline for August delivery was 299 points, or 1%, lower at $2.8530 per gallon.
Write to Konstantin Rozhnov at konstantin.rozhnov@dowjones.com
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