Bourse

Bourse

Oil prices pare gain but stay high

05 August 2009 07:58 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA-Economics. Oil prices edged lower after a three-day rally on Tuesday as investors weighed possible inventory buildup against strong housing data.
The National Association of Realtors said on Tuesday that U.S. pending home sales rose for the fifth consecutive month in June, another sign of recovery in the housing sector.
Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported a 0.4 percent gain in consumer spending, however U.S. personal incomes fell 1.3 percent in June, the steepest drop in more than four years, showing that consumer spending need more time to recover.
The market was pressured by the incoming inventory data due to released on Wednesday, which was expected to be a buildup in crude.
Light, sweet crude for September delivery dipped 16 cents to settle at 71.42 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. London Brent for September delivery rose 67 cents to 74.22 dollars a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.