Crude oil futures eked out a modest gain on Wednesday, after a volatile session, as traders mulled the latest US government stockpile data and a mixed bag of economic data.

Crude oil for April delivery climbed 15 cents at $92.77 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices ranged from a low of $92.18 to a high of $93.08 a barrel.

The US Energy Information Administration said crude supplies rose by 1.1m barrels for the week ended February 22nd, not as much as the 2.6m increase expected.

Gasoline supplies dropped 1.9m barrels, bigger than the 1.5m barrel decline expected. Distillates, used in diesel and heating oil, rose by 600,000 barrels. Analysts had predicted a 1.7m barrel decline.

Economic data provided a mixed snapshot of the US economy. The National Association of Realtors said January pending home sales climbed by 4.5%, beating expectations. It was also the highest growth rate since April 2010.

A separate report from Commerce Department showed US durable goods orders fell 5.2% in January as consumers curbed spending on big ticket items.

ICE Brent crude for April fell 22 cents at $112.49 a barrel after trading at an intra-day high of $113.35 a barrel.

Among precious metals gold settled below $1,600 on Wednesday on fresh concern that the Federal Reserve will exit its easy money policy sooner than previously thought.

Gold for April delivery dropped $19.80 to settle at $1,595.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Tuesday the April contract surged $28 or 1.8%.

Fed Chief Ben Bernanke told the US Senate's Banking Committee: "the evidence shows that the housing market is strengthening".

Bernanke also defended the central bank's bond buying policy to stimulate economic growth.



CJ

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