Oil extends decline amid projected rebound in US stocks

[TOKYO] Oil prices extended declines on Monday amid projections that US data is set to show a big rebound in crude inventories to offset an unexpected slump due to the impact of a tropical storm.

London Brent crude for November delivery was down 49 cents, or 1.0 per cent, at US$47.52 a barrel by 2246 GMT on Sunday after settling down 4 per cent on Friday.

NYMEX crude for October delivery was down 60 cents, or 1.3 per cent, at US$45.28 a barrel, after closing down 3.7 per cent on Friday.

Oil's decline over the past two days erased gains of more than 4 per cent on Thursday, which were triggered after US government data showed the biggest weekly drop in stockpiles since January 1999.

However, traders said imports fell as ships delayed offloading cargoes due to Tropical Storm Hermine.

Algeria's energy minister said there is a consensus among Opec and non-Opec members about the need to stabilise the oil market to support prices, state news agency APS reported on Saturday.

Opec Secretary-General Mohammed Barkindo told APS that Opec was not seeking a definite price range for oil but rather"sustainable stability" for the market.

Moves towards clinching a global deal on stabilising crude output come five months after talks for such a deal failed when Saudi Arabia insisted Iran join the pact.

Tehran says it supports any measures to stabilise the market, but has stopped short of indicating whether it would join a global deal before its production reaches 4 million barrels per day, the level at which it says it was pumping before the imposition of Western sanctions in 2012.

Forces loyal to eastern Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar took control of key oil ports in Ras Lanuf, Es Sider and Brega on Sunday, a spokesman for the forces said.

But an official from the force that previously controlled the ports, the Petrol Facilities Guard, said there was still fighting at Ras Lanuf.

US drillers added oil rigs for a 10th week in the past 11, according to the closely followed Baker Hughes rig count report on Friday. It was the longest streak without rig cuts since 2011.

Money managers cut their net long US crude futures and options positions in the week to Sept 6 for the second consecutive week, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Friday.

REUTERS