Some investors interpreted this as a sign that Saudi Arabia, the most influential member of OPEC, could push the oil cartel to curb its output and increase prices at its coming meeting December 4.
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Oil slumped Monday amid a broader commodity rout as the dollar gained, making commodities priced in the greenback more expensive.
The world’s biggest oil exporter sold 3.99 million metric tons to China in October, 0.8 percent more than in September, data from the Beijing-based General Administration of Customs showed on Monday. Analysts say the global glut of crude will likely persist through at least the first half of 2016.
Benchmark January Brent futures slipped 90 cents at $43.76 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell $1.26 a barrel to $40.64 a barrel, Reuters reported.
Brent futures settled up 17 cents at $45.83 a barrel. “S. crude output and seasonal demand provide some support to oil at low prices”.
Market intelligence firm Genscape reported a build of 2.2 million barrels at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery point for USA crude futures for the week ended November 20, traders who saw the data said.
KHOBAR, Saudi Arabia Nov 23 Saudi Arabia’s cabinet said on Monday it was ready to cooperate with OPEC and non-OPEC countries to achieve market stability, repeating what Oil Minister Ali Naimi said in a speech last week.
Global oil production is outpacing demand following a boom in US shale oil production and after a decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries past year not to cut production.
“The market is worn out from having looked at the production statistics and the ever increasing supply glut”, said Sucden analyst Kash Kamal.
“We still think that a low 40s NYMEX WTI is a floor from which the market can rally through the winter”, said BNP Paribas said in a research note.
ANZ bank said on Friday: “The weakness in the front end of the curve has pushed the market to deep contango again”. Russia, which isn’t a member of OPEC, is facing competition in Europe after Saudi Arabia reduced pricing for buyers in northwest Europe and started selling in established Russian markets such as Poland.
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Secretary general of Opec Abdalla El-Badri has previously warned under-investment could one day push oil prices as high as $200 per barrel.
