Crude oil futures struggle for direction ahead of Greece debt talks

Investing.com - Crude oil futures swung between small gains and losses on Thursday, as investors continued to monitor developments surrounding talks between Greece and its international creditors, amid fading hopes for a deal.

Investors nervously eyed developments in Greece’s debt talks ahead of the looming deadline for Greece to repay €1.6 billion to the International Monetary Fund on June 30. If Greece misses the payment it risks going into default, which could trigger the country’s exit from the euro area.

Negotiations faltered on Wednesday after Greece’s creditors rejected some of its latest proposed reforms and presented the government with counter proposals for a deal to unlock bailout funds.

Discussions were expected to resume in Brussels on Thursday morning, ahead of a Eurogroup meeting of euro zone finance ministers scheduled later in the day.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil for August delivery shed 13 cents, or 0.22%, to trade at $60.14 a barrel during European morning hours.

A day earlier, Nymex oil lost 74 cents, or 1.21%, to end at $60.27 after data showed that U.S. motor gasoline inventories rose by 0.7 million barrels last week, while distillate stockpiles increased by 1.8 million barrels.

Energy traders have been paying close attention to gasoline stockpiles in recent weeks as the U.S. driving season entered its peak gasoline demand period.

Total crude oil inventories fell by 4.9 million barrels last week to 463.0 million, compared to expectations for a drop of 2.1 million barrels to 465.8 million.

Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil for August delivery inched down 2 cents, or 0.04%, to trade at $63.47 a barrel. On Wednesday, Brent futures dropped 96 cents, or 1.49%, to close at $63.49.

The spread between the Brent and the WTI crude contracts stood at $3.33 a barrel, compared to $3.22 by close of trade on Wednesday.

Market participants were looking ahead to reports on U.S. consumer spending and weekly jobless claims due out later in the day amid ongoing speculation over prospects for higher interest rates.

Data on Wednesday showed that a contraction in U.S. first quarter economic growth was not a severe as initially estimated. The Commerce Department said the economy contracted at an annual rate of 0.2% in the three months to March, lower than the initial estimate for a 0.7% contraction reported last month.

The upward revision to was due in large part to stronger consumer spending, which was revised up to 2.1% from the initial estimate of 1.8%.