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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery added 79 cents to $70.00 on the New York Merc, while Brent for September added 73 cents to $73.24 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $13.60 to WTI, down from a discount of $12.80. Natural gas for September lost nine cents to $3.04. The TSX energy index lost 1.08 points to close at 278.49.

Oil prices had a wobbly day as traders sifted through mixed U.S. data. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), U.S. crude inventories increased by 7.7 million barrels last week, a bearish surprise next to analysts' predictions of a 1.3-million-barrel drop. On the more bullish side, product supplied of gasoline (a proxy for demand) notched a week-over-week rise to 9.15 million barrels a day from 8.96 million. Nine million is generally seen as the minimum comfort level for this time of year (peak summer driving season). The four-week average is still a tad short at 8.94 million barrels a day, down from 9.22 million this time last year.

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