Oil prices higher in Asian trade

SINGAPORE: Oil prices rose in Asian trade on Monday on expectation the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will further cut production.

New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, climbed 1.04 dollars to 46.56 dollars a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for April rose 83 cents to 45.68.

"There's a lot of credence given to OPEC cuts," said John Kilduff, an energy analyst at MF Global. The cartel is due to meet March 15 in Vienna to discuss further output cuts.

OPEC, which pumps 40 per cent of the world's oil, slashed output late last year by 4.2 million barrels per day in a bid to reverse tumbling prices and protect its revenues.

"We all want to see the global economy back on its feet as quickly as possible," OPEC chief Abdalla Salem El-Badri said last week.

But "oil prices need to be at levels to help sustain economic growth by supporting longer-term energy industry investments across the board," he said.