London oil prices rose to a three-week high today on concerns over a possible second quarter OPEC production cut, tightening global market forecasts and cold weather in the United States.
Oil futures on London's International Petroleum Exchange (IPE) rose 53 cents to $46.87 a barrel.
Trade was stymied by the closure of the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) for a US national holiday.
US oil futures climbed 81 cents to $48.35 a barrel on Friday, their highest closing level in more than three weeks, as dealers focused on the likelihood of OPEC trimming output and a short cold spell in the US Northeast.
Talk that OPEC is leaning toward reining in production ahead of the second quarter has been compounded by revised forecasts for a tighter-than-expected market this year.
"Oil market fundamentals remain extremely solid," SG Commodities said in a report. "Demand continues to rise at a sustained speed...Supply remains under the strict control of OPEC."
While a healthy 8.5 per cent year-on-year surplus in US crude oil inventories should soothe any concerns about short-term market tightness, dealers still worry that further builds could prompt tightening measures from OPEC.
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meets on March 16th in Iran to decide on second-quarter policy. The market has also been supported by cold temperatures in the heating-oil consuming US Northeast, which should give a fillip to winter demand as the season winds down.