Crude Oil Ends Higher Ahead Of Supply Data

(RTTNews) - U.S. crude oil ended higher for a second straight session on Tuesday, on lingering concerns over escalating tensions in Ukraine and worries of possible supply disruptions from Russia. Investors also await the official crude inventory data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration due Wednesday, with the American Petroleum Institute's weekly oil report due later today.

The outcome of the U.S. Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting that ends on Wednesday is also being eyed by investors.

In the ongoing tensions between Russia and the West, the U.S. and the European Union announced fresh sanctions against Moscow, targeting some top Russian officials and companies with alleged link to President Vladimir Putin.

In economic news, consumer confidence in the U.S. deteriorated modestly in April, reflecting a less favorable assessment of current business and labor market conditions, a Conference Board report showed Tuesday. Nonetheless, the reading for March was revised to its highest level since 2998. Meanwhile, home prices in major U.S. metropolitan areas for February rose in line with estimates, a report from Standard & Poor's showed.

Eurozone economic sentiment dropped unexpectedly in April from a 32-month high as the crisis in Ukraine weighed on confidence in services and construction.

Light Sweet Crude Oil futures for June delivery, the most actively traded contract, gained $0.44 or 0.4 percent to close at $102.84 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday.

Crude prices for June delivery scaled a high of $102.20 a barrel intraday and a low of $100.81.

On Monday, crude oil ended higher supported by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, with additional sanctions on Moscow by the U.S. and European Union fueled concerns of disruption of supplies from the region.

The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. unit against six major currencies, traded at 79.80 on Tuesday, up from its previous close of 79.70 late Monday in North American trade. The dollar scaled a high of 79.84 intraday and a low of 79.59.

The euro traded lower against the dollar at $1.3811 on Tuesday, as compared to its previous close of $1.3851 late Monday in North America. The euro scaled a high of $1.3880 intraday and a low of $1.3806.

In economic news from the U.S., home prices in major U.S. metropolitan areas rose in line with economist estimates in the month of February, according to a report released by Standard & Poor's. The report showed that the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index rose 0.8 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in February. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, the Index came in unchanged in February after edging down by 0.1 percent in January.

Meanwhile, the Conference Board's consumer confidence index dipped to 82.3 in April, from an upwardly revised 83.9 in March, reflecting a less favorable assessment of current business and labor market conditions.

Eurozone economic confidence in April dropped to 102 from 102.5 in March, a survey from the European Commission revealed Tuesday. The score was forecast to rise to 102.9 in April from March's originally estimated value of 102.4.

German consumer confidence is set to remain unchanged at a 7-year high in May, a survey by market research group GfK showed Tuesday. The forward-looking consumer confidence index came in at 8.5 in May, the same as seen in April and March. The score was the strongest since January 2007 and in line with economists' expectations.

From Europe, the U.K. economy grew at a faster pace in the first quarter on a broad based recovery across major sectors, overcoming the impact of flooding and wet weather. U.K.'s gross domestic product advanced 0.8 percent from the fourth quarter, when it grew 0.7 percent, preliminary data from the Office for National Statistics showed Tuesday. Economists, however, had forecast the GDP to rise 0.9 percent.