Oil Up Despite OPEC Comments
Updated from 11:15 a.m. EST
Crude oil prices erased an early loss, closing higher Monday, even though OPEC moved to calm the market amid another surge in prices.
The benchmark U.S. crude added 11 cents to $53.89 in Nymex floor trading, still within striking distance of its record closing high of last year.
OPEC's president said Sunday that the market was "well supplied," adding that the cartel was monitoring the market closely. The comments suggested OPEC would not cut production for a second time this year at its next meeting in Isfahan, Iran on March 16.
Prices have risen 10% in the past two weeks, breaking $50 a barrel for the first time since last October, when prices touched a record close of $55.17 a barrel.
The benchmark U.S. crude briefly traded as high as $55.20 last week, about 50 cents below its intraday record.
Concerns about OPEC's plans for production have supported prices along with unseasonably cold weather in parts of the U.S., which has stoked greater-than-usual demand for heating oil.
On Monday, cartel member Nigeria urged other producers to take steps to lower prices, while Iran's oil minister ruled out any change in output, according to media reports.