Brent crude advanced for the third time in four days amid speculation that OPEC will reduce its production ceiling when it meets later this week. West Texas Intermediate also rose in New York. Futures advanced as much as 0.7 percent in London, erasing an earlier loss. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries may try to agree to cut output to 29 million barrels a day, Standard Chartered Plc said today in a report. The group’s members may at least renew their commitment to bring supply closer to the current ceiling of 30 million barrels a day, according to Citigroup Inc. Oil has collapsed into a bear market amid the fastest rate of U.S. production in more than three decades as demand growth slows. OPEC, which pumps about 40 percent of the world’s oil, has maintained its official quota at 30 million barrels since January 2012. “We might get a cut, the big question is how much,� Michael Hewson, a market analyst at London-based CMC Markets Plc, said by e-mail. “Oil prices are still below last week’s highs so I think we’re just getting further positions adjustment ahead of Thursday’s meeting.� Brent for January settlement gained as much as 54 cents to $80.22 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange and was at $80.11 as of 11:09 a.m. local time. Prices gained last week for the first time since September after dropping to a four-year low of $76.76 on Nov. 14. The European benchmark crude’s premium to WTI was at $4.06, compared with $3.90 yesterday. ‘Unacceptable’ Prices WTI for January delivery advanced 27 cents to $76.05 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The volume of all futures traded was about 37 percent below the 100-day average for the time of day. Prices have decreased 23 percent this year. OPEC pumped 30.97 million barrels a day in October, exceeding its collective output target for a fifth straight month, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Action must be taken to boost prices because current levels are unacceptable, Iraqi Oil Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said yesterday. An accord to reduce output would be complicated by the lack of individual country quotas and Iraq’s long exemption from output targets, Paul Horsnell, global head of commodities research at Standard Chartered, said in the report. “Any agreement might involve some non-OPEC producers, at least nominally,� he said. Russia and Iran agreed to cooperate in the oil market, Iranian news service Shana reported, without giving details. Russia isn’t a member of OPEC.S Source: Bloomberg

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