Investing.com - Crude oil futures were lower on Thursday, as markets awaited the release of U.S. economic reports later in the day, after upbeat U.S. housing data on Wednesday sent the greenback higher.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude futures for delivery in September traded at USD104.95 a barrel during European morning trade, down 0.42%.
Official data on Wednesday showed that U.S. new home sales jumped to a five-year high in June, boosting expectations that the Federal Reserve will start to scale back its bond buying program later this year.
The Commerce Department said U.S. new home sales jumped 8.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 497,000 units, the highest level since May 2008.
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 prices still found some support however, after the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday said in its weekly report that U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 2.8 million barrels in the week ending July 19, exceeding expectations for a decline of 2.4 million barrels.
The U.S. is the world’s biggest oil-consuming country, responsible for almost 22% of global oil demand.
Separately, markets were jittery after the preliminary reading of China’s HSBC manufacturing PMI on Wednesday fell to an 11-month low of 47.7 in July, from a final reading of 48.2 last month. Analysts had expected the index to rise to 48.6.
China is the world’s second-largest oil consumer behind the U.S.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent oil futures for September delivery slid 0.27% to trade at USD106.90 a barrel, with the spread between the Brent and crude contracts standing at USD1.95 a barrel.
