Investing.com – Crude futures settled higher on Monday, after Russia and Saudi Arabia supported the idea of extending the supply-cut agreement into 2018 to drain the glut in supply.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for June delivery gained 21 cents to settle at $46.43 a barrel, while on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent added 30 cents to trade at 49.41 a barrel.
Oil prices bounced off lows, as oil ministers from both Russia and Saudi Arabia said they would consider extending production cuts into 2018.
Russian energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Monday, that a production cut extension for a longer period will help “speed up” market rebalancing.
Mr Novak’s comments on a possible deal extension for longer than the widely anticipated six-month period were echoed by Saudi oil chief Khalid Al-Falih, who said that he was “confident the agreement will be extended into the second half of year and possibly beyond”.
OPEC is expected to decide at talks on May 25 whether to extend the current deal to cut production for an additional six-months to the end of the year.
In November last year, OPEC and other producers, including Russia agreed to cut output by about 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd).
The positive start to the week for oil futures, came on the heels of a 6% loss sustained in the previous week, after concerns over rising U.S. oil output casted a doubt on OPEC’s efforts to rein in supply in the industry.
Oilfield services firm Baker Hughes reported Friday, its weekly U.S. rig count rose by 6 to 703. It was the sixteenth straight weekly increase amid expectations that U.S. shale output was set for its biggest increase this month.