The country is able to pump as much as 12.5 million barrels a day of oil, he said in comments broadcast during an official visit to buyers in Asia, its biggest market, including China.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Jawad Kadhim Al Abadi and his Kurdish counterpart, Nechirvan Barzani, have agreed to split the proposed export volume of 150,000 bopd from Kirkuk’s Baba Gorgor and Khabbaz fields between them. On Tuesday, Kurdish news outlet Rudaw also claimed an agreement on Kirkuk oil had been reached.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in October traded at $46.20 a barrel at 0122 GMT, down $0.15 in the Globex electronic session, the lowest intraday level since Aug 12. October Brent crude on London's ICE Futures exchange fell $0.02 to $48.35 a barrel.

“We support freezing oil production by OPEC due to the sharp decline of oil prices,” Mr. Abadi said at a news conference, saying it would help government-salaried oil-industry workers.

LetterOne, Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman's investment vehicle, is looking at acquisitions in renewable energy and oil assets in the North Sea outside of Britain, its executive chairman John Browne told.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were trading at $49.38 per barrel at 0505 GMT, up 12 cents from their previous close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 17 cents at $47.15 a barrel.

Light, sweet crude for October delivery settled up 56 cents, or 1.2%, to $47.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, its ninth winning session in the past 11. Brent, the global benchmark, gained 62 cents, or 1.3%, to $49.67 a barrel.

International benchmark Brent crude oil futures LCOc1 were trading down 10 cents at $48.85 per barrel at 0709 GMT, having closed down 1.8 percent the previous day. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $46.73 a barrel, down 4 cents, after dropping 2.8 percent on Wednesday.

"We have held conversations on strengthening our position in oil markets," Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said through an interpreter after a meeting with Ecuador's President Rafael Correa. Zarif added that the two countries have agreed to continue talks within the framework of OPEC, without providing further details. Ecuador Foreign Minister Guillaume Long said they discussed establishing a common position with regards to strengthening oil prices.

It suggests that crude oil could be entering a more stable trading range of $50-$70/barrel rather than falling back below $50 again for a significant period.

Iraq, which depends on oil sales for 95 percent of its public spending, appears set to continue boosting production, which currently stands at around 4.6 million barrels per day.

Iran sent a letter to members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries saying it would attend the group’s informal talks in Algeria in September, OPEC delegates told The Wall Street Journal. An Iranian oil-ministry press official couldn’t confirm the letter had been sent late Tuesday.

Saudi Arabia has traditionally accounted for most of the crude imports by Asia, the world's biggest oil-consuming region. But recently OPEC's top producer has lost ground in a number of major markets including Russia and China, and faces a further threat from Iran, which is ramping up exports after the removal of Western sanctions.

International Brent crude oil futures were trading at $48.86 per barrel at 0644 GMT (0244 ET), down 30 cents, or 0.61 percent, from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down 40 cents, or 0.84 percent, at $47.01 per barrel.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were trading at $49.39 per barrel at 1028 GMT, down $1.49 from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude Clc1 was down $1.27 at $47.25 a barrel.