By Jenny Gross
Crude futures rose Thursday as weaker-than-expected economic data in the U.S. eased fears that the U.S. Federal Reserve would soon cut back its monetary stimulus program.
At 0949 GMT, the August Brent on London's ICE futures exchange was up 44 cents, or 0.4%, at $102.10 a barrel. The August contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was up 26 cents, or 0.3%, at $95.77 a barrel.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said last week that if the economy unfolds as he expects, the Fed would reduce the size of its purchases of Treasury and mortgage-based bonds later this year.
But the worse-than-expected growth rate of the U.S. economy restored some calm in the markets, since an end to the Fed's monetary stimulus program could cause oil prices to fall. The U.S. economy expanded at a slower pace than previously estimated in the first quarter. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of goods and services produced in the economy, grew at a 1.8% annual rate from January through March, the U.S. Commerce Department said Wednesday. An earlier estimate was at 2.4%.
Brent crude markets have been trading between $100 and $105 a barrel for the past two months, struggling to break out of a narrow range, said Olivier Jakob, managing director of Swiss consultancy Petromatrix.
"Crude oil is really stuck," he said. He said planned mass protests in Egypt this weekend could cause jitters in the market.
Crude-oil inventories in the U.S. were unchanged at 394.1 million barrels for the week ended Friday, the EIA said in its weekly report Wednesday. Analysts had expected U.S. oil inventories to fall by 1.7 million barrels, according to a Dow Jones Newswires survey of analysts.
At 0950 GMT, the ICE's gasoil contract for July delivery rose $9.25, or 1.1%, to $873.00 per metric ton, while Nymex gasoline for August delivery was up 39 points, or 0.1%, at $2.7197 per gallon.
