LONDON: Brent crude oil held above $113 on Tuesday as traders awaited data to gauge the strength of the economy of the United States, the world's largest oil consumer.
Sentiment was boosted on Monday after business spending data from the United States helped reinforce the belief that a recovery was taking root.
Further adding to the positive mood on Tuesday, a poll showed German consumer morale rose for the first time in four months.
Brent crude was down 4 cents at $113.44 a barrel by 1023 GMT, while US crude rose 19 cents to $96.63.
"Growth and recovery news in the United States and Europe are on the positive side this morning. We haven't seen an impact on the crude market so far," said Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodity analyst at SEB in Oslo. "The sentiment and the technical analysis are still clearly bullish."
Markets were keenly awaiting the outcome of a two-day Federal Reserve policy meeting as well as first estimates for fourth-quarter gross domestic production (GDP) in the United States on Wednesday.
The Federal Reserve has said it expects to keep short-term interest rates exceptionally low to help support the economy.
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