Oil prices edge up amid Saudi support for extended supply cut

SEOUL (Reuters) – Oil prices inched up in early Asian trading on Friday, with Brent continuing to hover near its highest in 27 months, buoyed by comments from Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince backing the extension of OPEC-led output cuts.

International benchmark Brent crude futures () were up 9 cents at $59.39 a barrel at 0046 GMT, or 0.15 percent, from their last close, the highest close since July 3, 2015.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures () were up 4 cents, or 0.08 percent, at $52.68 per barrel.

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman told Reuters on Thursday that the kingdom would support the extending the output cut deal in a bid to stabilize oil demand and supply.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and some non-OPEC producers including Russia have pledged to curb their production by around 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) until the end of March to drain a global supply glut. OPEC will meet on Nov.30 in Vienna.

Oil prices have hovered around their highest levels of the year in recent weeks amid growing signs of a tightening market including talks over longer OPEC-led output cut deal and geopolitical risks in Iraq and Iran.

“Prices for both Brent and WTI are now approaching important recent range tops. My rhetorical self is bullish longer term and my system is already long,” said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at futures brokerage AxiTrader.

Although the rising likelihood that OPEC will extend its output cuts raises expectations for a balanced market, U.S. crude production remains an issue for OPEC as it strives to clear a global overhang.

U.S. crude production [C-OUT-EIA] rose by 1.1 million barrels per day to 9.5 million bpd in the week ended Oct.20, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data.

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.