Oil lower after housing data

Oil fell Monday after the U.S. government said sales of previously occupied homes dipped in June, AP reported. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark crude, dropped $1.14 to finish at $106.91 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Sales of previously occupied homes in the U.S. slipped 1.2 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.08 million. Any sign that the U.S. economic recovery is slowing can depress oil prices. Oil is still up more than $13 a barrel since June 21, underpinned by sharp declines in U.S. stockpiles and concerns of supply disruptions in the Middle East. Brent crude, which is traded on the ICE Futures exchange in London, rose 8 cents to end at $108.15 a barrel. In other energy futures trading on the Nymex: - Wholesale gasoline lost 7 cents to finish at $3.06 a gallon. - Heating oil gave up 2 cents to end at $3.07 a gallon. - Natural gas retreated by 11 cents to finish at $3.68 per 1,000 cubic feet