Crude-oil futures were slightly lower in Asian trading Thursday, with investors broadly bearish about the market's near-term prospects due to softening China demand and ready supply. Later Thursday, prices will likely take their lead from European manufacturing data and a European Central Bank meeting, before attention turns to Friday's U.S. nonfarm payrolls report, which is expected to drive direction early next week. While a weaker-than-forecast payrolls reading would usually pressure oil prices, it could also reinforce expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will maintain its stimulus measures for longer, after the central bank stressed Wednesday it could increase or reduce the size of its bond purchases depending on inflation and job growth. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at $90.78 a barrel at 0626 GMT, down $0.25 in the Globex electronic session. June Brent crude on London's ICE Futures exchange fell $0.15 to $99.80 a barrel. Futures struggled to gain traction Thursday, after data showing U.S. stockpiles are at their highest level in three decades, which fueled a selloff in the previous session. Crude-oil stockpiles surged 6.7 million barrels to 395.3 million barrels during the week ended April 26, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday. "Oil prices could be capped for now" due to the higher stockpiles, Credit Suisse analysts said in a report. A weaker HSBC China manufacturing purchasing managers' index added to the pessimistic mood Thursday, as investors fretted about the impact of China's moderating growth on energy and commodity markets. "Demand is pretty weak on the physical side for crude," Sijin Cheng, commodities analyst at Barclays in Singapore, said, adding that Brent crude could find near-term support around $95 a barrel. The spread between Brent and Nymex crude was at $9.02 a barrel, slightly wider than Wednesday's settlement at $8.92 a barrel. The differential is unlikely to narrow much from current levels, Ms. Cheng said. Nymex reformulated gasoline blendstock for June--the benchmark gasoline contract--fell 22 points to $2.7171 a gallon, while June heating oil traded at $2.7839, 50 points lower. ICE gasoil for May changed hands at $826.25 a metric ton, up $3.50 from Wednesday's settlement.

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