Oil climbed away from $65 today on the back of supply disruptions in Nigeria and comments by Opec ministers playing down prospects for an early increase in output.
London Brent crude, currently more representative of the global market than US oil, was up 38 cents at $65.58 earlier this morning. US crude was up 17 cents at $61.72.
Data showing a big increase in crude oil stocks in the United States had tipped Brent to a session low of $66.14 yesterday. But the sell-off was short-lived and analysts said Nigeria, where a quarter of output is closed because of militant attacks, remained firmly in focus.
US crude oil stocks increased by 5.6 million barrels last week, far exceeding analyst expectations for a rise of 400,000 barrels, partly because of high imports.
In the most recent violence in the Niger Delta, rebels took four US oil workers hostage on yesterday. On Tuesday they blew up three oil pipelines belonging to Italy's Eni, halting daily output of 98,000 barrels per day.
Supplies from Opec producers have been cut by agreed output curbs totalling 1.7 million barrels per day.