Oil prices steady after six weeks of gains, pressured by glut
Oil prices were little changed in choppy trade on Monday as persistent oversupply in the market largely offset hopes that a rollout of coronavirus vaccines will lift global fuel demand.
Brent crude futures for February ended the session 32 cents, or 0.6%, higher at $50.29 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for January settled up 42 cents, or 0.9%, at $46.99 a barrel.
Prices slid more than 1% earlier in the session after OPEC said global oil demand would rebound more slowly in 2021 than previously thought because of the lingering impact of the coronavirus pandemic, hampering efforts by the group and its allies to support the market.
Brent and WTI have rallied for six consecutive weeks, their longest stretch of weekly gains since June.
Signs of rising supply have weighed on the market. Libyan oil production stood at 1.28 million barrels per day on Monday, a National Oil Corporation (NOC) source said, up from 1.25 million bpd in late November.
In the United States, energy firms last week added the most oil and natural gas rigs in a week since January as producers continued to return to the well pad.
Reference: Reuters
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