VENTURE CAPITAL POST

Brent crude oil steadied around $63 a barrel on Tuesday, not far below the 2015 high, supported by worries that a civil war in Yemen could destabilize the Middle East, affecting oil supplies.

Oil rose towards $62 a barrel on Thursday as indications of a coming recovery in demand offset a further jump in U.S. crude stockpiles which underlined currently ample supplies.

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

Saudi Arabia's oil minister said on Sunday non-cooperation by producers outside of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the actions of speculators had led to the oil price fall, but he was confident the market would improve.

Saudi Arabia's oil minister told fellow OPEC members they must combat the U.S. shale oil boom, arguing against cutting crude output in order to depress prices and undermine the profitability of North American producers.

Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi is making his first visits in years to fellow exporters Venezuela and Mexico, although tumbling oil prices are not the stated purpose of the trip, according to officials and sources.

World oil prices are set to fall further, extending a months-long rout as Saudi Arabia is unlikely to make deep enough production cuts to erase a growing surplus of supply, according to Gary Ross, chief executive of PIRA Energy Group.

The drop in oil prices to their lowest in two years has caught many observers off guard, coming against a backdrop of the worst violence in Iraq this decade, heightened tensions between the West and Russia, and sanctions against Iran.