Oil prices steady

LONDON, MARCH 20. Oil prices stabilised at about $ 25 a barrel here today before publication of the weekly U.S stock figures and an interest rate decision from the U.S Federal Reserve.

A barrel of Brent North Sea crude for May delivery was changing hands for $ 24.90 a barrel, up from $ 24.81 at the previous close.

New York April futures fell 59 cents yesterday to $26.15 a barrel after a widely expected decision by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to reduce production by one million barrels a day from April 1. OPEC hopes to steady its basket price of seven world crudes at around $ 25 a barrel.On Monday its benchmark price fell to $ 22.64 a barrel from $ 23.09 on Friday, the OPECNA reported.

Traders had already turned their attention today to the latest batch of U.S stock figures from the American Petroleum Institute (API) to be published later in the day.

- AFP

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