Oil rose

West Texas Intermediate rose for the third time in four days after data showed the U.S. home-building industry is stabilizing. Brent was little changed near a six-week low.

Prices increased as much as 0.6 percent in New York. Building permits filed for future projects increased last month to the most since October and housing starts in the U.S. were little changed. Crude inventories at Cushing, Oklahoma, fell last week and total U.S. supplies gained for a ninth week, a Bloomberg survey showed before an Energy Information Administration report tomorrow.

“The market is a little optimistic about the U.S. economy and the demand outlook,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at the Price Futures Group in Chicago. “Building permits are increasing and housing starts are not bad. The market is waiting for tomorrow’s inventory report.”

WTI for April delivery gained 24 cents to $98.32 a barrel at 9:32 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The volume of all futures traded was near the 100-day average for this time of day.

Brent for May settlement slid 15 cents to $106.09 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. Volume was 22 percent below the 100-day average. The European benchmark crude settled at $106.24 a barrel yesterday, the lowest close since Feb. 4. Brent was at a premium of $8.31 to WTI for the same month. The spread closed at $8.62 yesterday.