Investing.com – Crude oil prices settled higher on Thursday as concerns over an uptick in U.S. and Libyan production were offset by talks of an extension to the Opec-led deal to curb output.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for November delivery rose 1.6% to settle at $50.79 a barrel, while on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent gained 2% to trade at $56.94 a barrel.
Oil prices recovered from a 1% slump sustained from the previous session as Saudi King Salman’s visit to Moscow fuelled expectations that the two nations would discuss a possible extension to the global pact to curb output.
The uptick in expectations of an extension to supply-cut agreement deal comes a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the deal between Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and other producers could be extended to the end of 2018.
"Putin and Salman will most likely reach, but not announce, an agreement to extend the OPEC/non-OPEC production deal, though with a commitment to taper the cuts," said consultancy Eurasia Group.
In May, Opec and non-Opec members agreed to extend production cuts of 1.8m barrels per day for a period of nine months until March 2018.
Investors weighed the possibility of an extension to the Opec-led deal against expectations that growing output in the U.S. and Libya could weigh on oil prices.
Libya restarted its largest oil field after a gunmen forced a shutdown of the field over the weekend while U.S. production hit its highest level in more than two-years.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Wednesday that U.S. oil production hit 9.56 million barrels a day in the week ended Sept. 29, its highest level since July 2015.