Investing.com - Crude oil futures traded near the lowest level in two weeks on Wednesday, as ongoing uncertainty over the timing of the Federal Reserve’s widely expected reduction in monthly bond purchases continued to weigh. Market players 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 October traded at USD104.58 a barrel during European morning trade, down 0.5%. Nymex oil futures fell by as much as 0.6% earlier in the session to hit a daily low of USD104.46 a barrel, the weakest level since August 9. Oil futures were likely to find support at USD103.63 a barrel, the low from August 9 and resistance at USD106.90 a barrel, Tuesday’s high. The October contract settled down 1.65% at USD105.11 a barrel on Tuesday, as investors looked ahead to Wednesday’s minutes of the Fed's July meeting for further indications as to when the central bank may start to taper its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program. 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. Oil traders also looked ahead to data from the U.S. government on oil and fuel supplies later in the day to gauge the strength of demand from the world’s largest oil consumer. The report was expected to show that U.S. crude oil stockpiles declined by 1 million barrels last week, while gasoline inventories were forecast to fall by 1.5 million barrels. After markets closed Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said that U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.2 million barrels last week, just above expectations for a decline of 1 million barrels. Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for October delivery shed 0.65% to trade at USD109.46 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD4.88 a barrel. Brent prices hit USD110.98 a barrel on Monday, the highest level since April 2. London-traded Brent prices have been well-supported in recent sessions amid fears over a disruption to supplies from the Middle East and North Africa. Market players also remained focused on the turmoil in Egypt, amid concerns that the escalating tensions would lead to the closure of the Suez Canal, which transports approximately 2 million barrels of crude oil a day from northern Africa to the U.S. Countries in the Middle East and North Africa were responsible for 36% of global oil production and held 52% of proved reserves in 2012.

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