Oil prices little changed as producers say market rebalancing

Oil prices stood little changed on Monday as major producers meeting in Vienna said the market was well on its way towards rebalancing.

The OPEC, Russia and several other producers have cut production by about 1.8 million barrels per day since the start of 2017, helping lift oil prices by about 15 per cent in the past three months.

Kuwaiti Oil Minister Essam al-Marzouq said in the Friday’s meeting that supply cuts were helping cut global crude inventories to their five-year average, OPEC’s stated target, reports Reuters.

London Brent crude for November delivery was down 3 cents at $56.83 a barrel by 0304 GMT, near the highest since March.

US crude for November delivery was down 8 cents at $50.58, having risen 0.2 per cent on Friday.

Russia’s energy minister said no decision on extending output curbs beyond the end of March was expected before January, although other ministers suggested such a decision could be taken before the end of this year.

Attempts to curb supply have faced rising US shale oil output. US energy firms cut the number of oil rigs operating for a third week in a row as a 14-month drilling recovery stalled as companies pared back on spending plans.

Hedge funds boosted bullish wagers on US crude oil to the highest level in one month, data showed.

Elsewhere, Nigeria is pumping below its agreed output cap, its oil minister said.

Oil also came under pressure from the dollar’s rise against euro after Germany’s election showed surging support for a far-right party that left Chancellor Angela Merkel scrambling to form a governing coalition.