Forexpros - Crude oil futures pushed higher on Tuesday, but gains were capped as investors weighed worries over prospects for global economic growth and the debt crisis in the euro zone against ongoing tensions between the west and Iran.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in November traded at USD92.20 a barrel during European morning trade, up 0.32%.
On Monday, prices fell by as much as 1.75% to hit a session low of USD91.26 a barrel, the weakest level since September 20, when prices touched a six-week low of USD90.96 a barrel.
Oil's losses came as the recent rally spurred by a series of stimulus measures from global central banks fizzled out as investors shifted focus back to concerns over the global economy.
New York-traded oil prices plunged 6% last week, amid growing concerns over the global economic outlook and the impact on future oil demand prospects.
In the euro zone, Spain saw borrowing costs rise at an auction of short-term debt earlier, reflecting lingering uncertainty over whether Madrid will request a full scale sovereign bailout.
Market sentiment was also hit by German media reports that lawyers for the German central bank are examining the legality of the European Central Bank's bond purchasing program, setting the stage for a possible legal challenge.
Meanwhile, concerns over Greece continued to weigh, as Athens prepared to present a package of spending cuts at the end of this week, amid fears that the country’s budget shortfall could be larger than expected.
Earlier in the session, sentiment had been briefly boosted following the release of encouraging German consumer confidence data.
The forward looking German GfK consumer sentiment index was unchanged at 5.9 for October, in line with expectations. The economic expectations component of the index rose to minus 17.2 points in September from minus 18.9 points in August.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the U.S. dollar against a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.16% to 79.71.
A stronger dollar makes U.S. commodities more expensive for importers holding other currencies such as yen or euro.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for November delivery climbed 0.47% to trade at USD110.33 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD18.13 a barrel.
