OPEC

Oil prices fell to a six month low under $60 (31 pounds) a barrel on Monday as BP's move to restore output at Prudhoe Bay earlier than expected added to a sense of healthy, secure supplies

The OPEC crude basket price, a daily reference level based on the prices of 11 crudes - dropped to $55.99 on Thursday from $56.23 the previous day.

Oil prices nudged higher for a second day on Monday, struggling to end their steepest slump in more than a decade amid robust winter fuel stocks and easing geopolitical and weather risks to oil supplies. NYMEX crude for October delivery

Oil rebounded above $66 a barrel on Tuesday, with bargain hunting traders ending a six day retreat after Iran sounded a softer note on its atomic programme

Oil dropped $1 on Monday as OPEC looked set to keep pumping at high rates to ensure world consumers were well supplied despite a 20 percent fall in prices since mid July.

OPEC member Algeria unveiled long-awaited amendments to a reform of its hydrocarbon sector on Saturday that limit foreign participation in exploration and production and impose a windfall tax on surplus profits.

Major oil producing countries will not lower their oil production for the rest of the year as they work toward stabilizing oil prices, said OPEC's President, Edmund Daukoru on Thursday.

OPEC president Edmund Daukoru met the chief executive of Brazil's state-owned oil company on Tuesday to discuss the country's rapidly growing ethanol industry.

The world can cope for now with the loss of about 1 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil from Alaska and Nigeria, but the pressure is on exporter group OPEC to fill the gap, the International Energy Agency said on Friday.

Oil prices topped $78 per barrel Friday and held near record highs as intensifying violence in the Middle East raised concerns of possible supply disruptions.

The $70-a-barrel mark for oil, decisively breached this week, is seen by many analysts as a danger level. But some argue sustained prices of well over $60 have inflicted surprisingly little pain and done some good.

A blistering four-year rally in crude oil shows no sign yet of running out of steam and crude could top $80 a barrel this year, boosting fuel costs for consumers and businesses, analysts said on Tuesday.

Oil surged to a record high above $72 on Tuesday on concern that Iran's nuclear stand-off with the West could cut oil exports from the world's fourth-largest crude exporter.

U.S. crude oil prices hit $70 on Monday, the highest level for nearly eight months, as Iran's pursuit of its nuclear programme heightened fears the U.S. might take military action against the oil-producing nation.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Monday that he will ask OPEC to set the long term price for a barrel of oil at $50 USD, a price nearly $16 below current levels.

OPEC agreed on Wednesday to keep exports unchanged, rebuffing consumer country calls for more crude to rein in $90-a-barrel oil. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries justified the deal on its assessment that it is already pumping enough crude to meet winter fuel demand after a September decision to lift output.