SINGAPORE: Oil markets were stable on Monday, with Brent remaining above $60 per barrel supported by expectations that an OPEC-led production cut due to expire next March would be extended.
Brent crude oil futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, were at $60.40 per barrel at 0236 GMT, 4 cents above their last settlement but still close to their highest level since July 2015 and up more than 36 percent since their 2017 lows last June.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up by 5 cents, or 0.1 percent, at $53.95 a barrel.
“With strong compliance to OPEC’s production curbs already supporting prices, comments from the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince that suggested the production cut agreement should be extended added to gains,” ANZ bank said.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) plus Russia and nine other producers have agreed to hold back about 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) to get rid of a supply glut. The pact runs to March 2018, but Saudi Arabia and Russia, who are leading the effort, have both voiced their support to extend the agreement.
OPEC is scheduled to meet officially at its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, on Nov. 30.
While OPEC and its partners are withholding supply, US production
Oil markets stable on expected extension of output cuts
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