Crude prices mixed in Asian trade

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SINGAPORE, May 4 (AFP): Crude was mixed in afternoon Asian trade today because of slumping US demand, with the death of Osama bin Laden also helping temper prices, analysts said. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in June, shed 35 cents to $110.70 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for June delivery turned higher to gain five cents to $122.50. Data released by the American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday predicting a 3.2 million barrel gain in US inventories was depressing markets, said Ong Yi Ling, investment analyst for Phillip Futures in Singapore. "This is much more than the two million barrels forecast so this is weighing on crude markets currently," she told AFP. An increase in US stockpiles indicates softer energy demand in the world's largest oil consuming nation. Ong added that the death of bin Laden was also tempering costs as it "has resulted in a reduction of the risk premium allocated to crude oil". The Saudi-born terror leader was killed Monday in a raid by US special forces deep inside Pakistan.