2019.07.1606:32:00UTC+00Oil Edges Higher Ahead Of Inventory Data

Oil prices rose slightly on Tuesday as drillers in the Gulf of Mexico start returning to platforms evacuated ahead of Hurricane Barry.

Benchmark Brent crude rose 0.3 percent to $66.66 a barrel, after having fallen 0.4 percent overnight. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 0.25 percent at $59.73 a barrel, after declining around 1 percent in the previous session.

After Barry weakened to a tropical depression and moved further inland, producers on Monday began restoring output.

Anadarko said it has restarted production at its Marlin offshore facility. "We expect to resume production at all of our operated facilities that were shut in due to Barry following platform assessments and availability of third-party infrastructure," Anadarko said in a statement.

Investors remained focused on tensions in the Middle East and inventory data due out later in the day.

The American Petroleum Institute will publish its weekly U.S. crude oil stockpiles data later today while the official government data will be released on Wednesday.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) report will also include data on U.S. production, which markets will watch for signs of escalating supply.

In its monthly report released on Monday, the EIA forecast that crude oil production from seven major U.S. shale formations will likely climb by 49,000 barrels a day in August to a record 8.546 million barrels a day.