NYMEX crude gains slightly in Asia ahead of API data from U.S.

Investing.com - Crude oil prices rose slightly on Wednesday with industry data ahead of U.S. stockpiles last week and geopolitical tension keeping the tone firm despite ample supplies.

The American Petroleum Institute will release figures on refined products and crude in U.S. stockpiles last week, data delayed a day because of a public holiday.

On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Energy will release its own, more closely-watched, figures.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, WTI crude for July delivery rose 0.09% to $58.44 a barrel.

Overnight, crude futures plummeted sharply on Tuesday reaching its lowest levels in the month of May, amid a stronger dollar and geopolitical concerns in the Middle East.

On the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), Brent crude for July delivery fell $63.73 a barrel, down $1.79 or 2.73% on the session Tuesday.

In a note to investors, Goldman Sachs (NYSE:NYSE:GS) said U.S. output could increase in the coming months if crude prices stabilize. Last week, crude production nationwide dwindled to 9.262 million barrels per day amid a slowdown in Alaska.

"We believe that should West Texas Intermediate prices remain near $60 a barrel, U.S. producers will ramp up activity, given improved returns," Goldman Sachs said in a report.

While U.S. durable goods orders fell slightly by 0.5% in April, the decline was less sharp than a projected 0.6% loss by analysts. The figure was tamped down by a 4% decline in commercial airlines and 3.4% dip in computer orders.

A reading of core orders, however, which excludes volatile bookings of airplane and auto orders, rose by 0.5% last month, above expectations of a 0.4% gain. Last month's rebound could be attributed solely to a surge in airplane orders after transportation procurements spiked by 15.2%. In March, the core reading fell by 0.2% month-to-month and by nearly 2% on a yearly basis.

The U.S. Department of Commerce also said in a monthly report that new home sales in April rose 6.8% to a seasonally-adjusted 517,000. The gains fell in line with analysts' forecasts of a 485,000 to 540,000 increase for the month.

Separately, consumer confidence showed signs of stabilizing moving to 95.4 for the month of May, up 0.2 from a previous reading last month. Analysts expected The Conference Board's monthly Consumer Confidence Index to tick down by 0.1 to 95.1. Dollar-denominated commodities such as crude become more expensive when the dollar appreciates.

In Iraq, there were reports of ongoing fighting and airstrikes in the Anbar province west and south of the city of Ramadi, which was seized by fighters from the Islamic State early last week.

In December, crude output in Iraq spiked at a record 4 million barrels per day a month earlier, significantly above a previous high of 3.56 million barrels in 1979. Iranian officials, meanwhile, indicated on Sunday they are unlikely to change its output ceiling when OPEC meets next on June 5. If economic sanctions are lifted against Iran this summer, it has been forecasted that Iranian exports could increase to 1.7 million bpd in a 12-month span adding to the glut of supply in the global market.