Oil prices stabilised in early Tuesday trading, after rising the previous day because of unrest in Nigeria and fears of more output cuts by Opec.
US light crude dropped two cents to $60 a barrel in Far Eastern trade, after having risen 88 cents on Monday.
London Brent crude, which rose 60 cents on Monday, fell nine cents to $59.66.
Opec oil producers cut output at the start of this month to try to rise prices, but some think the cartel will have to go further.
Despite these continuing concerns, analysts said prices had levelled off because traders were waiting for more information, such as weather and economic forecasts.
"Traders are still looking for clues for clear direction," said Ken Hasegawa, an analyst with Himawari CX in Tokyo.
'Oversupply'
Opec President Edmund Daukoru has already said the 11-member group may need to cut prices further than the 1.2-million-barrel-a-day reduction that started on 1 November.
"The market is clearly oversupplied, clearly oversupplied," he said.
The unrest in Nigeria happened on Monday when armed protesters shut down one of the country's oil facilities.
Nigeria's oil network has been hit by sporadic violence since the start of the year from anti-government militants.
Global oil prices have fallen 20% since hitting record highs in July against the backdrop of the conflict in Lebanon.
Source: BBC News
US light crude dropped two cents to $60 a barrel in Far Eastern trade, after having risen 88 cents on Monday.
London Brent crude, which rose 60 cents on Monday, fell nine cents to $59.66.
Opec oil producers cut output at the start of this month to try to rise prices, but some think the cartel will have to go further.
Despite these continuing concerns, analysts said prices had levelled off because traders were waiting for more information, such as weather and economic forecasts.
"Traders are still looking for clues for clear direction," said Ken Hasegawa, an analyst with Himawari CX in Tokyo.
'Oversupply'
Opec President Edmund Daukoru has already said the 11-member group may need to cut prices further than the 1.2-million-barrel-a-day reduction that started on 1 November.
"The market is clearly oversupplied, clearly oversupplied," he said.
The unrest in Nigeria happened on Monday when armed protesters shut down one of the country's oil facilities.
Nigeria's oil network has been hit by sporadic violence since the start of the year from anti-government militants.
Global oil prices have fallen 20% since hitting record highs in July against the backdrop of the conflict in Lebanon.
Source: BBC News
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