Oil Drifts Lower After Topping $51 a Barrel

The dollar was steady at 94.45 yen Friday, but that was down from nearly 99 yen just two days ago.

OPEC has also helped boost prices by largely complying with 4.2 million barrels a day of production cuts the group has announced since September. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries decided not to reduce output quotas at a meeting on Sunday, but instead focus on adhering to the existing cuts.

Analysts estimate OPEC has so far fulfilled about 80% of the promised cuts.