U.S. crude oil inches higher after mixed data, API report ahead

Investing.com - West Texas Intermediate oil futures inched higher on Tuesday, as investors digested a mixed bag of U.S. economic data.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil for delivery in March tacked on 28 cents, or 0.62%, to trade at $45.43 a barrel during U.S. morning hours. Prices held in a range between $44.82 and $45.69.

A day earlier, New York-traded oil futures hit a low of $44.35 a barrel, a level not seen since March 2009, before settling at $45.15, down 44 cents, or 0.97%.

The U.S. Commerce Department said new home sales climbed by 11.6% to a seasonally adjusted 481,000 units last month, above expectations for 450,000.

At the same time, the Conference Board said its index of consumer confidence improved to 102.9 this month, the highest level since August 2007, and up from 93.1 in December. Analysts expected the index to increase to 95.1 in January.

Earlier in the day, the U.S. Commerce Department said that total durable goods orders, which include transportation items, fell by 3.4% last month, compared to expectations for a gain of 0.5%.

Core durable goods orders, excluding volatile transportation items, declined by 0.8% in December, disappointing forecasts for a 0.6% gain.

Market participants now looked ahead to fresh weekly information on U.S. stockpiles of crude and refined products to gauge the strength of demand in the world’s largest oil consumer.

The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventories report later in the day, while Wednesday’s government report could show crude stockpiles rose by 3.8 million barrels in the week ended January 23.

Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for March delivery picked up 17 cents, or 0.34%, to trade at $48.33 a barrel. On Monday, Brent for March delivery lost 63 cents, or 1.29%, to close at $48.16.

Oil prices have fallen nearly 60% since June as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries resisted calls to cut output, while the U.S. pumped at the fastest pace in more than three decades, creating a glut in global supplies.

Meanwhile, the euro was higher against the dollar, after hitting an 11-year low in the previous session, as fears sparked by anti-austerity Syriza party's victory in Sunday's Greek elections subsided.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, dipped 0.95% to hit 94.38, after touching a more than 11-year high of 95.77 last Friday.

Market players are looking ahead to the start of the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting later in the day, for further clarification on when interest rates might start to rise.