Investing.com - U.S. oil prices bounced off four-month lows on Friday, but gains were expected to remain limited as concerns over U.S. stockpile levels and production continued to weigh on the commodity.
U.S. crude futures for April delivery were up 0.73% at $49.64 a barrel, off the previous session’s four-month lows of $48.59 hit overnight.
On the ICE Futures Exchange in London, the May Brent contract gained 0.61% to trade at $52.51 a barrel, after hitting a four-month trough of $51.50 on Thursday.
Oil prices plummeted after the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday that crude supplies surged by 8.2 million barrels last week to yet another all-time high of 528.4 million.
It was the ninth straight weekly build in U.S. stockpiles, feeding concerns about a global glut.
Futures have been trading in a narrow $5 range around the low-to-mid-$50s over the past three months as sentiment in oil markets has been torn between rising stockpiles and increased shale production in the U.S. and hopes that oversupply may be curbed by output cuts announced by major global producers.
OPEC and non-OPEC countries made a strong start to lowering their oil output by almost 1.8 million barrels per day by the end of June.
Kuwait is scheduled to host a ministerial meeting on March 26 comprising both OPEC and non-OPEC members to review compliance with the output agreement, the second such meeting since the deal was reached.
Oil ministers of Saudi Arabia, Russia, Kuwait, Oman, Algeria and Venezuela will attend the meeting, along with the OPEC secretary general.