Oil prices remained stable in Asian trading on Monday as markets awaited the OPEC+ meeting on June 2, where producers are anticipated to discuss continuing voluntary output cuts for the rest of the year.
As of 0638 GMT, the Brent crude July contract increased by 24 cents to US$82.36 a barrel, while the more active August contract rose by 29 cents to US$82.13.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures climbed 28 cents to $78 per barrel.
Last week, Brent ended about 2% lower, and WTI lost nearly 3% after Federal Reserve minutes revealed that some officials were willing to tighten interest rates further if necessary to control persistent inflation.
Public holidays in the U.S. and UK on Monday are expected to result in relatively thin trading.
The upcoming OPEC+ meeting was postponed by a day and will be held online, OPEC announced on Friday.
Producers will discuss whether to extend voluntary output cuts of 2.2 million barrels per day into the second half of the year, with three sources from OPEC+ countries indicating an extension is likely.
Oil futures are expected to maintain today’s gains due to the anticipated extension of the cuts, said Sugandha Sachdeva, founder of Delhi-based research firm SS WealthStreet.
“However, the trajectory of price action will be significantly influenced by the U.S. Producer Price Index (PPI) data scheduled for the week, which will in turn shape the Federal Reserve’s approach to potential rate adjustments,” Sachdeva said.