Investing.com - West Texas Intermediate oil futures were little changed near a one-month low on Wednesday, as investors awaited the release of weekly supply data out of the U.S. later in the session to gauge the strength of oil demand from the world’s largest consumer.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil for delivery in August dipped 0.01%, or 1 cent, to trade at $103.39 a barrel during European morning hours. Futures held in a tight range between $103.30 and $103.59 a barrel.
U.S. oil futures fell to $103.01 a barrel on Tuesday, the lowest since June 9, before trimming losses to settle at $103.40, down 0.13%, or 13 cents.
New York-traded oil futures were likely to find support at $101.89 a barrel, the low from June 9 and resistance at $105.53 a barrel, the high from July 2.
Wednesday’s government report was expected to show that U.S. crude oil stockpiles fell by 2.2 million barrels last week, while gasoline stockpiles were forecast to decline by 0.3 million barrels.
After markets closed Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said that U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.7 million barrels in the week ended July 4, compared to expectations for a decline of 3.0 million barrels.
The report also showed that gasoline stockpiles increased by 0.2 million barrels, while distillate stocks fell by 0.6 million barrels.
Investors also looked ahead to the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s June policy meeting later in the day, after last week’s robust nonfarm payrolls data revived speculation over when the central bank may start to raise interest rates.
Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for August delivery shed 0.31%, or 34 cents, to trade at $108.61 a barrel, the lowest since June 6, as worries over potential supply disruptions in the Middle East continued to subside.
Ongoing indications that Iraqi oil exports from the southern part of the country remained insulated from the sectarian violence that has swept the north in recent weeks weighed.
Meanwhile, Libyan rebels agreed to open two of its ports for oil exports last week. The Es Sider and Ras Lanuf terminals have a capacity to export up to 560,000 barrels of oil a day, nearly half of the country's oil exports.