REUTERS
Crude oil slid for a second session on Monday, falling further from last week's 2016 highs on concerns over a supply glut after the U.S rig count rose for the first time since December, Reuters reported.
U.S. energy firms last week added one oil rig after 12 weeks of cuts, according to data by industry firm Baker Hughes, Reuters reported.
The addition, coming after oil rigs had fallen by two-thirds over the past year to 2009 lows, showed the fall in crude drilling stabilizing after a 50-percent price rally since February.
U.S. crude CLc1 dropped 67 cents, or 1.7%, to $38.77 a barrel by 0617 GMT. The market on Friday climbed to $41.20 a barrel, its highest since early December, before losing ground to settle down nearly 2% at $39.44, according to the report.
Brent crude's front-month contract LCOc1 was down 33 cents at $40.87. It hit a high of $42.54 a barrel in the last session.
"The rebound in crude oil prices in the last month appears to have stabilized the number of rigs at work in the U.S. shale sector," ANZ said in a note to clients, according to Reuters.
Global oversupply in oil had knocked crude prices down from mid-2014 highs above $100 a barrel to 12-year lows earlier this year, taking Brent to around $27 and U.S. crude to about $26.
The combination of declining oil output, smaller crude stockpile builds and surging gasoline consumption in the United States helped the recovery.
Prices have also rallied over the last two months after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries floated the idea of a production freeze at January's levels.
But the market is looking for more news on this step, as noted.