NEW YORK: Oil traded steady to higher on Tuesday, buoyed by gains on Wall Street that helped prices rebound after a tumble in the previous session, ahead of an industry report that’s expected to show if US crude stockpiles have fallen after weeks of gains.

US crude futures’ front-month contract was up 70 cents, or 1.6 percent, at $44.70 a barrel by 1540 GMT.

The front-month in Brent, the global oil benchmark, was up 5 cents at $46.42. Brent settled down $1.77, or almost 4 percent, on Monday.

Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index surged 0.8 percent on upbeat US retail sales data for August.

US crude’s outperformance versus Brent has narrowed the spread between the two benchmarks to 7-1/2 month lows. The differential fell to as low as $1.53 a barrel on Tuesday, the smallest since Jan. 20, after it settled on Monday at $2.37.

The outlook for US crude improved after positive forecasts this week by the EIA.