Crude gains slightly ahead of inventories reports

Crude oil prices were up on Tuesday after substantial declines on Monday.  Brent crude June contracts dropped $2.65 on Monday but were back up 56 cents from Monday’s close in late trade on the International Petroleum Exchange to $70.23 per barrel.  June contracts expire at the end of the trading day on Tuesday, so more attention became focused on July Brent contracts, which gained 87 cents to $71.05 per barrel.  Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange saw June contracts add 89 cents to $70.30 per barrel.  The gains come ahead of new US inventories numbers, due on Wednesday.