LONDON: Brent crude oil steadied below US$98 a barrel yesterday, not far above 26-month lows reached at the start of the week as Opec talk of a production cut balanced worries about ample supply at a time of fragile demand.
Brent hit its lowest point since July 2012 on Monday as oil supply overwhelmed lacklustre demand in Europe and Asia, with a glut of high-quality, light oil pushing North Sea crude for immediate delivery to big discounts below futures.
Brent was unchanged at US$97.70 a barrel by 1325GMT, while US crude was down 40 cents at US$92.67.
Both contracts saw their biggest drop in more than two weeks on Thursday.
“It’s quite difficult to find any bullish factors. The Chinese and European economies are weak and are putting on pressure,” said Tetsu Emori, commodity fund manager at Astmax. Reuters