Oil prices have held steady in a narrow range recently as traders focused on concerns about a potential oversupply and signals of Russian oversupply.

Brent traded near $68, holding within the $65 to $70 range it has held for the past month. India denied increasing US pressure to end Russian crude imports, with the country's oil minister saying the purchases help protect the global economy from price spikes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Vladimir Putin at a regional summit in China.

Trading on Monday is likely to be light due to the Labor Day holiday in the US. Global oil benchmarks have fallen about 10% this year, pressured by a flood of additional supply from OPEC+, as well as concerns that the US-led trade war will hamper energy demand. The producer group, which includes Russia, is scheduled to hold a virtual meeting on September 7 to discuss next steps, with the International Energy Agency predicting the market will face a record-breaking oversupply next year.

"The shift in strategy from OPEC+ to regain market share has improved the supply outlook," wrote DNB Carnegie analysts Helge Andre Martinsen and Tobias Ingebritsen in a note. "Combined with strong near-term non-OPEC supply growth, this should push the oil market balance into a significant oversupply in Q4."

In the US, hedge funds narrowed their bullish positions on US crude to the lowest level in about 18 years as uncertainty over economic policy exacerbated growing concerns about oversupply. Conversely, outright bets on higher Brent prices rose to their highest since early July last week, as the spread between the two benchmarks widened. (alg)

Source: Bloomberg