Market claws back some of Monday39;s losses
US crude, product inventories seen down last week
China39;s frail growth raises urgency for policy support

July 18 Reuters Oil prices inched upwards in Asian trade on Tuesday as investors eyed a possible tightening of U.S. crude supplies, after sinking in the previous session on weakerthanexpected Chinese economic growth.

Brent crude was up 26 cents at 78.67 a barrel by 0450 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 29 cents to 74.44 a barrel.

Both contracts fell more than 1.5 on Monday.

Market participants were awaiting industry data later on Tuesday that is expected to show U.S. crude oil stockpiles and product inventories fell last week.

Four analysts polled by Reuters estimated on average that U.S. crude inventories fell by about 2.3 million barrels in the week to July 14.

Lacklustre gross domestic product GDP data from China released on Monday kept a cautious lid on prices with some reservations in its demand recovery, said Jun Rong Yeap, a market strategist at IG in Singapore.

China39;s GDP grew 6.3 yearonyear in the second quarter, compared with analyst forecasts of 7.3, as its postpandemic recovery lost momentum.

Nevertheless, some traction from buyers has emerged lately, with prices breaking above its nearterm consolidation pattern last week which may suggest some exhaustion in selling pressure, following the downbeat sentiments over the past one year, Yeap added.

Meanwhile, U.S. shale oil…