Oil prices were mixed in Asian trade today as dealers focused on the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting this week in anticipation of further stimulus pullback.
New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for March delivery, was up nine cents at $96.73, while Brent North Sea crude for March eased 32 cents at $107.56.
Analysts said that investors were sitting on the sidelines amid "heightened anticipation that the Fed will further engage in tapering.
Markets are waiting to see if the Fed's Open Market Committee will cut another $10 billion from monthly asset purchases when it meets on Tuesday and Wednesday.
In December, the Fed said it would begin tapering the stimulus by $10 billion to $75 billion a month in January.
The so-called tapering of the Fed's asset purchases would likely boost the dollar, making dollar-priced oil more expensive for countries using other currencies, dampening demand.
But analysts said that in the long-term, the move would signal "better prospects for crude oil" as it indicated the Fed's confidence in the US economy, which would translate into stronger demand.
Investors were also closely monitoring developments following the recent opening of the Southern leg of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline in the US. The $2.3 billion pipeline last week started carrying crude 487 miles (785 kilometres) from Cushing in Oklahoma to Gulf Coast refineries in the southern state of Texas.
The pipeline's initial transportation rate of 300,000 barrels per day, about half of its maximum capacity, has so far disappointed investors.
