IV:Crude oil futures rise to 1-week high ahead of U.S. supply data
Investing.com - Crude oil futures rose to a one-week high on Tuesday, as investors looked ahead to the release of key U.S. weekly supply data to gauge the strength of oil demand from the world’s largest consumer.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in September traded at USD106.73 a barrel during European morning trade, up 0.6%.
Nymex oil futures rose by as much as 0.7% earlier in the session to hit a daily high of USD106.81 a barrel, the strongest level since August 6.
Oil futures were likely to find support at USD103.63 a barrel, the low from August 9 and resistance at USD107.23 a barrel, the high from August 6.
The September contract settled up 0.15% at USD106.11 a barrel on Monday.
Oil traders looked ahead to the release of fresh weekly information on U.S. stockpiles of crude and refined products to gauge the strength of oil demand in the world’s largest oil consumer.
The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventories report later in the day, while Wednesday’s government report could show crude stockpiles fell by 1.5 million barrels.
Market players also awaited U.S. data on retail sales later in the day, which will be scrutinized for its potential impact on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy stance.
Investors have closely been looking out for U.S. data reports recently to gauge if they will strengthen or weaken the case for the Fed to reduce its bond purchases.
Any improvement in the U.S. economy was likely to reinforce the view that the central bank will begin to taper its bond purchase program in the coming months.
The Fed’s stimulus program is viewed by many investors as a key driver in boosting the price of commodities as it tends to depress the value of the dollar.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for September delivery inched up 0.35% to trade at USD109.34 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD2.61 a barrel.
Brent futures were supported amid renewed concerns over a disruption to supplies from Libya, where striking security guards reimposed a two-week-old shutdown at the country’s two biggest crude export terminals
