REUTERS - Brent crude futures LCOc1 were down 72 cents at $61.49 per barrel at 1020 GMT, having fallen by 1.5 percent on Tuesday, its largest one-day drop in a month. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 was at $55.12 per barrel, down 58 cents.

BLOOMBERG - Prices dropped during the session as the International Energy Agency said the recent recovery in oil prices, coupled with milder-than-normal winter weather, is slowing demand growth. The worsening outlook for consumption dampened some of the enthusiasm that OPEC and its allies will extend supply curbs.

Global energy needs rise more slowly than in the past but still expand by 30% between today and 2040. This is the equivalent of adding another China and India to today’s global demand.

Product exports have grown significantly over the past several years and are expected to continue to grow as Russian refineries add capacity to produce more high-quality products.

OPEC and allied oil producers should extend their production cuts beyond March to help re-balance the market, the United Arab Emirates said, adding weight to a gathering consensus for longer reductions in output among participants in the global accord.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were at $63.55 per barrel at 0614 GMT, up 3 cents from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 was at $56.79 per barrel, up 5 cents.

PLATTS - Nigeria's Bonny Light crude has seen its price rise to its highest levels since February, as the grade began to trade in a more regular fashion in the spot market following several months of disruption due to loading delays and forces majeures.

REUTERS - Nigeria will move ahead with plans to borrow $5.5 billion from foreign investors after the Senate on Tuesday approved President Muhammadu Buhari request for the move.

REUTERS - Further complicating the situation, S&P Global Ratings declared Venezuela in selective default after it failed to make coupon payments on bonds due in 2019 and 2024 within a 30-day grace period. The agency warned there was a strong chance it would miss further payments within three months.

API welcomed legislation that would allow for safe and responsible natural gas and oil development in a small non-wilderness portion of Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). The legislation was released by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to be included as part of the budget reconciliation bill.

EIA - Crude oil production from the major US onshore regions is forecast to increase 80,000 b/d month-over-month in December to 6.174 million b/d, gas production to increase 779 million cubic feet/day.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were at $63.55 per barrel at 0614 GMT, up 3 cents from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 was at $56.79 per barrel, up 5 cents.

The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $61.72 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $61.61 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

Vietnam’s state television said Chinese President Xi Jinping had told Vietnam’s General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong he wanted to work with Southeast Asian nations on a code of conduct in the sea. China’s Xinhua news agency said China and Vietnam had agreed to properly handle maritime issues and strive to maintain peace and stability.

Output is expected to slump to 1.84 million barrels a day next year, the lowest compared with official government data since 1989.