Oil prices took a bounce after the death of Saudi Arabia’s King Shah Abdullah added more uncertainty to the market that has more than halved over the last six months.
King Abdullah died in the wee hours of Friday and his brother Salman declared as a new king, by the royal court.
Saudi state television said King Salman intended to keep oil minister Ali al-Naimi in place, suggesting the country’s oil policy would remain unchanged.
However Brent crude futures rose to a high of $49.80 a barrel shortly after opening before easing back to $49.52 a barrel by 0533 GMT, up $1. US benchmark WTI crude futures were at $47.11, up 80 cents, slightly below a high of $47.76 hit earlier in the session.
The Analysts expect the new Saudi king to continue an OPEC policy of at 30 million barrels per day, keeping oil output steady to protect the cartel’s market share from rival producers.