Oil prices rise on U.S. inventories data

NEW YORK, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices rose on Wednesday as lower-than-expected rise in U.S. crude inventories eased market concerns about global oil glut.

U.S. crude inventories rose 0.9 million barrels last week to 534 million, the country's Energy Information Administration.

Analysts said the rise was only half of the build expected and that it was a sign of tightening U.S. crude supplies.

The West Texas Intermediate for May Delivery added 1.14 U.S. dollar to settle at 49.51 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for May delivery increased 1.09 dollars to close at 52.42 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.