Rosneft is looking for some financial relief from Russia’s sovereign wealth fund

Oil companies in Russia, the world's biggest producer which has budgeted for $100 crude, played down the oil price drop, saying it would not last and would not damage long term projects.

Schlumberger Ltd, the world's largest oilfield services company, said oil and gas spending would increase in 2015 as global oil demand is poised to rise, downplaying fears of an investment slowdown due to weak crude prices.

The Brent-WTI spread, the difference between the front month futures price of North Sea Brent crude oil and that of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil, narrowed to $2.00 per barrel (bbl) as of October 15, after reaching a 2014 high of $14.95/bbl in January

Oil prices posted their biggest one-day drop in nearly two years Tuesday as a U.S.-led wave of crude has crashed into weak global demand, threatening the stability of some countries and providing an economic lifeline to others.

Bank of America Corp. and BNP Paribas SA predict prices will hold above $80 a barrel. Commerzbank AG also sees that level as a possible low for Brent crude. They’re in part counting on OPEC cutting output -- some say as soon as next month -- to compensate for recent declines in demand.

BG Group Plc (BG/) appointed Statoil ASA (STL)’s Helge Lund as chief executive officer, ending a leadership crisis at the U.K.’s third-largest oil and gas producer.

South African President Jacob Zuma outlined ambitious plans on Wednesday for oil andgas exploration in coastal waters that he said could contain as much as 9 billion barrels of crude and vast quantities of natural gas.

OPEC is resisting pressure to cut oil production while demand slumps as it tests how low prices must go to make U.S. shale oil unprofitable. As producers become more efficient, that floor is sinking.

Saudi Arabia effectively started a global oil price war this month aimed at quickly denting U.S. oil output. Slowing a U.S. drilling boom, however, could take more than a year.