Saudi Arabia won’t balance global crude markets on its own even as prices fall “too low for everybody” and threaten the investment needed to meet long-term demand, the head of Saudi Arabian Oil Co. said.

After more than three years of US$100-110 per barrel oil, prices collapsed by nearly 50 percent in late 2014 as the market lost its "manager" after OPEC refused to cut production.

Iran's oil minister is expressing hope that the OPEC oil cartel will begin cutting production in order to shore up plunging oil prices.

The head of Italian energy company Eni Spa urged OPEC on Wednesday to act to restore stability in oil prices, which he warned could overshoot to $200 per barrel several years down the road because of low investment now.

The growing uncertainty surrounding oil prices presents a major challenge to all price forecasts. EIA's January Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), released yesterday, forecasts Brent crude oil prices averaging $58/bbl in 2015 and $75/bbl in 2016, with annual average WTI prices expected to be $3/bbl to $4/bbl below Brent.

In 2015, world oil demand is anticipated to rise by 1.15 mb/d, following an upward revision of 30 tb/d due to expectations of higher oil requirements in OECD America and Other Asia.

Oversupply in crude markets could take months or even years to fix depending on when producers outside OPEC cut their output, Abu Dhabi-based The National reported, citing comments by U.A.E. Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei.

Oil extended losses below $50 a barrel amid speculation that U.S. crude inventories will expand, exacerbating a global supply glut that’s driven prices to the lowest level since April 2009.

Ali al-Naimi, the oil minister of Saudi Arabia, was in no mood to address reporters at Opec’s November meeting, refusing to offer more than a few words after the cartel decided to hold output at 30m barrels a day.

Turkey is on its way to becoming the main hub for energy in Europe due to the recent introduction of the Turk Stream in place of South Stream. The elevation of the country's role became feasible after a series of major infrastructure projects that will certainly make Turkey the corridor for the supply of gas into the EU for the coming decades.