Oil prices advanced Tuesday on growing prospects for an OPEC output cut this weekend, analysts said.
New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in April, rose 22 cents to 47.29 dollars a barrel in morning trade.
Brent North Sea crude for April climbed 15 cents to 44.28 dollars.
New York crude jumped Monday to a two-month intraday high of 48.83 dollars on falling crude stockpiles amid hopes that OPEC would decide to cut output further this Sunday.
"Crude oil gained 1.55 dollars (in New York on Monday) as the contract rallied on expectations of a OPEC production cut," said Jeffrey Dawkins, Chief Investment Officer at US-based asset managers The FQ Group.
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is due to meet in Vienna and Libya's envoy to the group had indicated on Monday that output cuts were a possibility.
"I will not say that we are going to cut but I will not exclude it. All options are open," envoy Shukri Ghanem said.
"We will evaluate the world situation of (crude) stocks, the price movement, the interpretation of the different countries ... and then we can take a decision but we don't have a decision at this time."
OPEC, which pumps 40 percent of the world's oil, cut output late last year by 4.2 million barrels per day in a bid to reverse tumbling prices and protect its members' revenues.
Prices are down from record highs above 147 dollars hit in July 2008 as the global recession has steadily cut demand for oil.
