OIL

BRENT crude rallied yesterday, as investors weighed the potential outcome of next week’s Opec meeting.

Brent for January settlement gained 83 cents to $78.93 a barrel (R5.44 a litre) in the afternoon on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. West Texas intermediate for January was up 69c at $75.19 at 10.08am in New York. The December contract expired yesterday.

Leading members of Opec are resisting calls to reduce output while others, including Venezuela, seek action to support prices at a November 27 meeting in Vienna. An Opec production cut looks increasingly likely, Morgan Stanley said in a report on Wednesday. Trading volatility rose to the highest in more than two years.

“The market is eyeing next week’s Opec meeting for some kind of movement,” Gene McGillian at Tradition Energy said. “Opec needs to take action and make the cuts. The market is still under pressure, but we are close to the bottom.” – Bloomberg