REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, NEW YORK - Benchmark US crude for May delivery was down 3 cents at 99.43 USD a barrel at 0825 GMT in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 56 cents to 99.46 USD on Friday. Brent crude, used to set prices for international varieties of crude, fell 28 cents to 106.64 USD a barrel
The preliminary version of HSBC's purchasing managers' index for China released Monday showed manufacturing dropped to an eight-month low.
The index fell to 48.1 from February's 48.5 on a 100-point scale. Readings above 50 indicate expansion. Factory output shrank at the fastest pace in 18 months.
But Asian stock markets were higher Monday as investors bet that China would introduce economic stimulus measures to prevent a deeper slowdown in the world's No. 2 economy.
Investors are also waiting for data on the US housing market with Tuesday's release of the S&P/Case-Shiller index of home prices for January. Also Tuesday, the government will report on new home sales in February and the Conference Board will release the Consumer Confidence Index for March.
In other energy futures trading on Nymex:
— Wholesale gasoline eased 0.7 cent to 2.892 USD a gallon.
— Heating oil fell 0.8 cent to 2.906 USD a gallon.
— Natural gas rose 2.2 cents to 4.335 USD per 1,000 cubic feet.
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