09:06 AM EDT, 03/26/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Oil prices edged higher early on Tuesday as fresh US inventory data is awaited.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil for May delivery was last seen up US$0.19 to US$82.14 per barrel, while May Brent crude, the global benchmark, was up US$0.09 to US$86.84.

Prices have slipped off a five-month high touched last week amid geopolitical worries as violence continues in the Middle East, lower US inventories and Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil refineries that have significantly damaged that country's processing capacity.

"WTI crude oil and Brent crude oil front month futures trade steady after both climbing 1.6% on Monday as Ukrainian drones hit another Russian oil refinery, adding to the list of casualties of Russian refining infrastructure, which according to (Goldman Sachs) has knocked out an estimated 900,000 barrels per day of refining capacity," Saxo Bank noted.

The damage to Russia's refineries has pushed the price of refined products higher, with gasoline futures up 19% over the past month, though heating oil is less affected as shoulder season demand sets in.

Coming surveys of US inventories may offer direction to the market, with the American Petroleum Institute releasing its weekly survey later on Tuesday, followed Wednesday morning by official data from the Energy Information Administration.

We are forecasting US crude inventories down 1.3 MM BBL for the week ending March 22. This compares to a 2.0 MM BBL draw for the week ending Mar. 15, with the total US crude balance realizing much looser than we had anticipated, breaking a prolonged stretch of tighter-than-expected weekly balances," Macquarie Group energy strategist Walt Chancellor noted.