Oil held its decline near $39 a barrel in New York, heading for the first monthly loss since April, as the world’s biggest trading houses signaled a meaningful recovery in demand is some way off.
Libya’s oil industry continued to revive this week following a truce between the main factions in the OPEC member’s devastating civil war.
Venezuela’s dwindling oil exports were dealt another blow as one of India’s top refiners secured millions of barrels of Canadian crude on concern that the U.S. is poised to step up sanctions against Caracas.
Market volatility and a resultant fall-off in share prices has left Aim-listed oil and gas firms vulnerable to takeover, according to sector specialists at Ernst and Young.