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MTECHTIPS:-Crude pares losses amid reports of possible collapse of OPEC meeting
U.S. crude futures closed slightly lower on Thursday paring losses from earlier in the session, after reports surfaced that a highly-anticipated meeting between OPEC and Non-OPEC producers will not be held unless the top participants can win the support of a defiant Iran. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, WTI crude for April delivery traded in a broad range between $37.22 and $38.47 a barrel, before settling at 37.78, down 0.51 or 1.36% on the session. At session highs, U.S. crude futures came percentage points away from the 2016 calendar year highs it reached in the previous session. Over the last month, WTI crude has soared more than 30%, rallying sharply from 13-year lows from mid-February. On the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), brent crude for May delivery wavered between $39.66 and $41.02 a barrel, before closing at 40.08, down 1.03 or 2.48% on the session. North Sea crude futures are also trading near 2-month highs after jumping more than 25% over the last four weeks. The rally has been spurred by speculation that as many as 10 OPEC and Non-OPEC producers could meet on March 20 in Russia for a summit aimed at stabilizing record-low oil prices. The meeting could come weeks after the completion of the so-called Doha Agreement, in which Saudi Arabia, Russia and two other OPEC members agreed in principle to freeze output at their respective January levels. Any hopes for a meeting, though, could be dented by Iran’s absence. Iran has been hesitant to cap its output after returning to global markets last month for the first time in nearly a decade following the completion of its comprehensive nuclear deal with a host of Western Powers. By the end of 2016, Iran hopes to ramp up its exports to pre-sanction levels from 2007.
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