AFP reported that world oil prices rebounded slightly as traders went bargain hunting and after the International Energy Agency upgraded its forecast for global demand.
Analysts said that New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate light sweet crude for July delivery added 39 cents to USD 95.20 per barrel. Brent North Sea crude for August won USD 1.41 to USD 114.42 per barrel in London morning deals on the contract's first trading day.
Mr Victor Shum a Singapore based analyst at Purvin and Gertz international energy consultancy said that commodity traders were buying up crude after its overnight dip. Traders view this as a buying opportunity after oil prices tumbled.
Crude futures had plunged dramatically to below USD 95 per barrel in New York as investors fretted about fresh signs of weakness in the US economy and tensions in Greece which sent the dollar jumping. But prices won modest support after the IEA raised its global oil demand forecast for 2011 by 0.1 million barrels per day to 89.3 million barrel per day.
IEA said that it sees demand rising to 90.63 million barrel per day in 2012 an increase of 0.6 million barrel per day from its previous forecast that was given in December. The Bull Run in oil prices has largely been driven by fundamentals of supply and demand with emerging markets set to keep stoking demand and keep prices above USD 100 per barrel.
