Oil hovers near $92 ahead of weekly U.S. supply data

SINGAPORE — Oil hovered above $92 a barrel Tuesday in Asia as analysts estimated that supplies of U.S. crude and gasoline likely fell last week.

Benchmark crude was up 20 cents at $92.40 a barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 80 cents on Monday to settle at $92.20 in New York.

In London, Brent crude was up 66 cents at $110.21 on the ICE Futures exchange.

The American Petroleum Institute is scheduled to announce its weekly crude and oil products supply data later Tuesday. Analysts surveyed by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos., predict crude inventories fell 300,000 barrels while gasoline stocks dropped 2 million barrels, signs that energy demand may be improving.

The Energy Department’s Energy Information Administration reports its weekly supply data Wednesday.

After jumping from below $78 in June, crude has bounced around near $90 for the last few weeks as investors weigh weak global economic growth against possible monetary and fiscal stimulus measures.

“We’re stuck once again in a range,” Carl Larry of Oil Outlooks and Opinions said in a report. “It tells me one thing; we are where we should be. That means I think when all the static is cleared, $90 a barrel is the porridge that is not too hot or not too cold.”

In other Nymex energy trading, wholesale gasoline futures were up 1.3 cents at $2.93 a gallon and heating oil gained 0.9 cent to $2.95. Natural gas added 0.2 cent at $2.91 per 1,000 cubic feet.