By Katya Golubkova

TOKYO (Reuters) – Oil prices rose on Tuesday in thin trading ahead of the Christmas Day holiday, with prices supported by U.S. economic data and rising oil demand in India, the third largest importer of oil in the world.

Futures rose 33 cents, or 0.45%, to $72.95 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 29 cents, or 0.42%, to $69.53 a barrel at 0114 GMT.

New orders for key U.S.-made capital goods surged in November amid strong demand for machinery, while new home sales also rebounded in a sign the U.S. economy is recovering. is on solid footing heading into the end of the year.

The United States is the leading consumer of oil in the world.

In the shorter term, traders looked for signs of US demand from crude oil and fuel stockpile data due from industry group the American Petroleum Institute later on Tuesday.

Analysts polled by Reuters estimated on average that crude inventories fell by about 2 million barrels in the week to December 20 in a sign of healthy demand. The Energy Information Administration is due to release its data on Friday.

ended the last three sessions just below the $69.50 level as volatility exited the market ahead of the holiday period, IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.

“Because of this, I suspect we remain pinned in a narrow range either side of $69.50, perhaps until Wall Street reopens on the 27th,” he said via email .

Meanwhile, crude oil imports by India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, rose 2.6% year-on-year to 19.07 million metric tons in November, government data showed, on the back of strong demand. amid rising economic activity and travel.

In the Middle East, a new bid by mediators in Egypt, Qatar and the US to end the fighting between Israel and Hamas gained momentum this month and the gaps between the parties narrowed, officials said. in Israel and Palestine, although significant differences do not exist. to solve.