NYMEX April crude futures on CME's Globex system were 58 cents higher at $97.86/barrel Friday while ICE's April Brent was $1.18 higher at $112.54/b, consolidating after Thursday's wild gyrations.
Both contracts traded to their highest levels in two and a half years before profit-taking on reassurances regarding supply by the Saudis, the International Energy Agency and the US sent markets plummeting shortly ahead of the close of open outcry in New York.
"Strategic reserves, while being spoken about, are not in the running just yet, with a considerably higher price spike required to bring them into play," analysts at Barclays Capital said in a report. "Thus, the burden of first move currently falls on OPEC, who, in our view, will need to take transparent and overt action in order to restore some stability and calm nerves in the market."
But the IEA said it was already seeing evidence of additional cargoes of crude oil from Saudi Arabia being made available to refiners in the Mediterranean to make up the shortfall in supply from Libya and the comments had little effect on prices.
Heating oil and RBOB futures were up about 2 cents each, but crude markets remained front and center of the complex.
