HOUSTON, July 1 (Xinhua) -- The American Petroleum Institute (API) on Tuesday reported an increase of 0.68 million barrels of crude oil in U.S. inventories for the week ending June 27.

Analysts expect a drop of 2.26 million barrels for this week.

Oil prices advanced on Tuesday. The West Texas Intermediate for August delivery gained 34 cents, or 0.52 percent, to settle at 65.45 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for September delivery went up 37 cents, or 0.55 percent, to settle at 67.11 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange. ■