LONDON: Brent crude oil edged higher towards $102 a barrel on Wednesday, after slumping to a 14-month low in the previous session, as growing output from Iraq and Libya despite violence in those countries has kept the market well supplied.
The international oil benchmark has fallen more than 12 percent since hitting a year-high of $115.71 in June. The surge of radical Islamist militants in Iraq that first rattled oil markets has yet to significantly cut supplies from the country, which is the second-largest producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
Lukoil, Russia's second-biggest oil producer, said on Tuesday it had shipped its first 1 million barrels of oil production from the giant West West Qurna-2 oilfield in Iraq, despite the violence.
Brent crude for delivery in October was up 37 cents at $101.93 a barrel by 0822 GMT. The contract fell to $101.07 on Tuesday, its lowest since June 26, 2013.
The US crude contract for September delivery, which expires at the close of trading on Wednesday, rose 69 cents to $95.17 a barrel after falling sharply in the previous session.
The more actively-traded October contract rose 17 cents to $93.03, with its discount to Brent approaching $9, the largest since June.
Delegates from three OPEC members said the group was not worried about a slide in oil prices towards $100 a barrel, with current levels seen as acceptable while higher seasonal demand is expected to support the market in the coming weeks.
In Libya, a spokesman for National Oil Corp said the country's total oil production had risen to 562,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 535,000 bpd at the weekend.
"That's very much what the market is focusing on, the abundance of supply and the decreasing risk in terms of the geopolitical tensions," said Ben Le Brun, market analyst at OptionsXpress in Sydney.
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