Brent crude oil prices fell towards $48 a barrel on Tuesday after the International Monetary Fund cut its forecast for global economic growth in 2015 implying lower demand for fuel.
Energy
New Saudi king seen holding line on OPEC policy to keep oil output high
Saudi Arabia's new king is expected to continue a policy of keeping oil output steady to drive out rival producers, though the royal succession has focused market attention on the future of the kingdom's long-serving oil minister.
Oil jumps as Saudi king's death feeds market uncertainty
Oil prices jumped on Friday as news of the death of Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah added to uncertainty in energy markets already facing some of the biggest shifts in decades
Oil settles lower after large U.S. inventory build
Crude oil prices pared early losses but still settled lower on Thursday after a government report showed the biggest build in U.S. crude inventory in at least 14 years.
Brent crude oil rises above $48.50, but outlook remains weak
Oil prices edged up on Wednesday in a further sign of support around current levels, but analysts said the outlook for the next six months remained bleak due to oversupply.
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Brent crude oil prices fell below $49 a barrel and U.S. crude also fell more than $1 on Monday after the global economic outlook darkened and Iraq announced record oil production.
A small but heavily subscribed pipeline that transports 42,000 barrels a day of crude oil from North Dakota's Bakken region is expected to remain closed on Tuesday after a weekend breach that spilled 1,200 barrels of crude into the Yellowstone River near Glendive, Montana.
Japanese Economics Minister Akira Amari said on Tuesday he wants to hear what the Bank of Japan thinks about a sharp decline in oil prices and its impact on consumer prices, as the BOJ's 2 percent inflation goal becomes ever more difficult to reach.
Iran sees no sign of a shift within OPEC toward action to support oil prices, its oil minister said, adding its oil industry could ride out a further price slump to $25 a barrel.
Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Monday, with markets expecting gloomy Chinese economic data to be published this week.
German utility RWE will complete the sale of oil and gas unit DEA [RWEDE.UL] to Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman by early March, it said on Friday, easing fears of a potential collapse.
U.S. crude traded above $48 on Friday after the University of Michigan released a report showing U.S. consumer sentiment reached its highest level in more than a decade in December.
Brent crude oil rose more than $2 to around $50 a barrel on Friday after the West's energy watchdog forecast the market sell-off would end, although analysts said a strong rebound soon was unlikely as global output continued to outweigh demand.
Lifting U.S. crude export restrictions could boost domestic oil production and cut gasoline prices, according to a report issued Friday by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy.
