Adjusted earnings were USD 857 million in the first quarter compared to USD 2,945 million in the same period in 2015. The reduction was primarily a consequence of significantly lower liquids and gas prices, partially offset by good operational performance and reduced underlying operating costs. Adjusted earnings after tax were USD 122 million in the first quarter, down from USD 902 million in the same period last year.

At an average price of $53 per barrel of oil means the world’s 50 biggest publicly traded companies in the industry can stop bleeding cash, according to oilfield consultant Wood Mackenzie Ltd. Nabors, which owns the world’s largest fleet of onshore drilling rigs, said it has already been talking with several large customers about plans to boost work in the second half of the year if prices rise "comfortably" above $50.

Amid improving market sentiment and a weakening dollar, the World Bank is raising its 2016 forecast for crude oil prices to $41 per barrel from $37 per barrel.

The French oil company said on Wednesday it had made $1.6bn in adjusted net income in the first three months of the year. This marks a turnround from the previous quarter, when it made a loss of $1.8bn, but remains some way below the $2.6bn it made in the first quarter of last year.

A global crude oil deficit will develop before the end of this year, the chairman of Facts Global Energy consultancy Fereidun Fesharaki said Monday.

The International Monetary Fund said it was encouraged by the efforts of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab oil exporters to repair damage to their state finances as low crude prices slash export revenues.

The project, which includes plans to float a stake in the world's largest oil company and set up one of the world's largest government investment funds, is meant to provide a blueprint for sweeping reforms to steer the OPEC kingpin sharply away from its decades-long reliance on cheap-to-produce oil. King Salman said in a short televised announcement that the Cabinet approved the "Vision 2030" plan on Monday, and he called on Saudis to work together ensure its success.

“With this rule, the Russian government is trying to break the vicious dependence of the economy on oil via the ruble. What’s changing is that the Russian government is signaling to the market participants that the ruble will be more predictable to spur investments into the economy.”

The May crude oil contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange climbed $1.55 on Apr. 20 to $42.63/bbl. The June contract was up $1.71 to $44.18/bbl.

"I think $45 is a bit of a relief for all the oil producers around the world, but this is still far lower than to make the entire shale oil production profitable for the United States."