Oil gains as dollar sags near three-year low; many Asian markets shut

By Osamu Tsukimori

TOKYO (Reuters) – Oil prices edged higher on Friday as the dollar languished near a three-year low, with Asian trade likely to be subdued as many markets are closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

NYMEX crude for March delivery () was up 11 cents, or 0.2 percent, at $61.45 a barrel by 0101 GMT, after settling up 74 cents on Thursday.

For the week, the contract has risen nearly 4 percent after losing nearly 10 percent last week.

London Brent crude () was up 24 cents, or 0.4 percent, at $64.57 after settling down 3 cents. Brent is up nearly 3 percent for the week after falling more than 8 percent last week.

Oil producers led by Saudi Arabia and Russia aim to draft an agreement on a long-term alliance by the end of this year, United Arab Emirates energy minister Suhail al-Mazroui said.

OPEC and non-OPEC producers are restraining production by a total 1.8 million barrels per day to prop up prices under a deal that is to expire at the end of 2018.

The move comes at a time when Asian demand is on the rise. India imported a record 4.93 million bpd in January to feed its expanded refining capacity and meet rising demand, data showed.

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