Daily Market News By Fxnet

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OIL PRICES LOWER FOLLOWING HIGHER RIG COUNT

Markets anticipating an OPEC meeting

On Monday, oil prices prolonged losses from the previous session in European trade, following the first US rig count rise since December, raising concerns about the supply glut.

Crude oil for April delivery lost 72 cents on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) trading at 39.47 dollars a barrel by 09:50 GMT.

Oil has been struggling with supply exceeding demand, the decline in rig count in previous weeks helped the commodity gain some of its lost value, while the increase in rig count this week took back some of the gains.

Brent for May lost 40 cents on the ICE futures exchange in London, falling to 40.80 dollars a barrel.

Last week oil prices had jumped higher following five weeks of gains prompted by a decline in US shale production, Brent futures had added 2.01 percent last week after four weeks of gains.

The oil market is still expecting oil producers, both OPEC (organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) and non-OPEC, to convene and reach a decision to control output. According to Qatari oil minister Mohammad Bin Saleh Al-Sada, a meeting is schedule in Doha on the 17th of April, for over 20 producers, who will account for 73 percent of global oil production.