Oil prices rose on Wednesday following announcement that producers will meet next month in Qatar to discuss a proposal to freeze output as U.S. crude production declines.
Producers both from and outside the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will hold talks in the capital Doha on April 17, Qatari oil minister Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada said.
The minister said in a statement that about 15 OPEC and non-OPEC producers, accounting for about 73 per cent of global oil output, supported the initiative.
Brent crude futures were up 78 cents at 39.52 dollars a barrel at 1140 GMT.
U.S. crude futures were trading 79 cents a barrel, higher at 37.13 dollars.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Venezuela, along with non-OPEC member Russia, agreed last month to freeze output at January levels, but Iran has rejected such a deal.
On Monday, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said a deal could be signed excluding Iran, which he said had the right to boost oil output after years of sanctions.
Kuwait plans to take part in the meeting, acting oil minister, Anas al-Saleh said on Wednesday.
Analysts, however, said talks about freezing output would do little in a global glut that sees more than one million barrels of crude produced every day in excess of demand.
But Standard Chartered said supply concerns due to non-OPEC production cuts could drive prices above 60 dollars a barrel by the end of the year.
“We think that in coming months supply-side concerns will dominate, particularly when global inventories start to fall, which we think will happen in the third quarter,” the bank said in a note.
The market is also eyeing crude inventory data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration due later on Wednesday.
The numbers are expected to show a rise of 3.4 million barrels last week, a media poll of eight analysts showed.(Reuters/NAN)