Investing.com - Oil futures traded modestly lower in the early part of Wednesday’s Asian session as traders booked profits in crude following a strong showing in Tuesday’s U.S. session.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for July delivery fell 0.27% to USD95.01 per barrel in Asian trading Wednesday after settling up 1.29% at USD95.36 a barrel on Tuesday.
Traders bid up oil following the release of two impressive U.S. economic data points. In U.S. economic news, the Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 major metro U.S. areas rose 10.9% in March while the 10-city index rose 10.3%. All 20 cities posted year-over-year growth with Phoenix, San Francisco and Las Vegas leading the way.
The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index increased to 76.2 this month, good for the best reading since May 2008. Analysts expected a reading of 72.5. The April reading was 69.
"Consumers’ assessment of current business and labor-market conditions was more positive and they were considerably more upbeat about future economic and job prospects," Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the Conference Board, said in a statement.
Real estate and consumer data are pivotal pieces of the U.S. economic puzzle as the consumer there accounts for roughly 70% of GDP. The U.S. is also the world’s largest oil-consuming nation.
Elsewhere, Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil, Aramco, said exports reached 2.521 billion barrels last year, a significant increase from 2.421 billion barrels in 2011. Total production rose to 3.479 billion barrels, which the company says its a record.
Saudi Arabia is the largest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. OPEC meets this Friday in Vienna.
Elsewhere, Brent futures for July delivery fell 0.32% to USD104.16 per barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for July delivery fell 0.27% to USD95.01 per barrel in Asian trading Wednesday after settling up 1.29% at USD95.36 a barrel on Tuesday.
Traders bid up oil following the release of two impressive U.S. economic data points. In U.S. economic news, the Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 major metro U.S. areas rose 10.9% in March while the 10-city index rose 10.3%. All 20 cities posted year-over-year growth with Phoenix, San Francisco and Las Vegas leading the way.
The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index increased to 76.2 this month, good for the best reading since May 2008. Analysts expected a reading of 72.5. The April reading was 69.
"Consumers’ assessment of current business and labor-market conditions was more positive and they were considerably more upbeat about future economic and job prospects," Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the Conference Board, said in a statement.
Real estate and consumer data are pivotal pieces of the U.S. economic puzzle as the consumer there accounts for roughly 70% of GDP. The U.S. is also the world’s largest oil-consuming nation.
Elsewhere, Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil, Aramco, said exports reached 2.521 billion barrels last year, a significant increase from 2.421 billion barrels in 2011. Total production rose to 3.479 billion barrels, which the company says its a record.
Saudi Arabia is the largest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. OPEC meets this Friday in Vienna.
Elsewhere, Brent futures for July delivery fell 0.32% to USD104.16 per barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange.