Leading Gulf oil producers Saudi Arabia and Kuwait gave the clearest signal yet that OPEC plans to extend into the second half of the year a deal with non-OPEC producers to curb oil supplies.
Oil prices regained some ground on Thursday, after steep losses in the previous session, as leading Gulf oil producers signaled a likely extension of OPEC-led supply cuts beyond the middle of the year.
Oil edged higher on Wednesday as OPEC said it was committed to eroding a global surplus of crude, but increasing shale production in the United States and still-high global stocks threatened to pull prices lower.
Crude oil slid lower on Monday on signs that the United States is continuing to add output, largely counteracting strong economic growth in China and OPEC efforts to cut production.
Investors who took a hit last year when dozens of U.S. shale producers filed for bankruptcy are already making big new bets on the industry's resurgence.
China's economy grew faster than expected in the first quarter as higher government infrastructure spending and a gravity-defying property boom helped boost industrial output by the most in over two years.
Oil prices edged higher on Thursday after the International Energy Agency (IEA) said the market was nearing balance, while U.S. data showing higher production kept gains in check.
OPEC cut oil output in March by more than pledged under a supply reduction deal and said oil inventories had fallen in February, suggesting that its effort to clear a supply glut that has weighed on world oil prices is succeeding.
