SEOUL, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Crude oil futures lost ground on Monday in early Asian trading, as the global supply surplus pressured prices, but a cut in the number of U.S. oil rigs for an 11th week in the last 12 limited the falls.
Benchmark front-month Brent futures for January LCOc1 fell 16 cents or 0.36 percent at $44.50 a barrel as of 0011 GMT after it ended up 48 cents at $44.66 a barrel on Friday.
U.S. crude's West Texas Intermediate (WTI) January contract CLc1 also shed 31 cents or 0.74 percent at $41.59 a barrel against its previous settlement at $41.90.
U.S. crude's December futures CLZ5 which expired on Friday ended 15 cents down at $40.39 after hitting a low of $38.99, the cheapest since Aug. 27.
Venezuelan oil minister Eulogio del Pino said on Sunday that OPEC cannot allow an oil price war and must take action to stabilise the crude market soon. When asked how low oil prices could go in 2016 if OPEC doesn't change its policy, he said: "Mid-20s." urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N13H0K7
Algeria's energy earnings are forecast to fall to $26.4 billion next year while foreign exchange reserves will dip to $121 billion after low oil prices cut into the OPEC nation's economy, Finance Minister Abderrahmane Benkhalfa said on Sunday. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N13H0H4
U.S. crude were briefly supported on Friday as U.S. drillers removed 10 oil rigs in the week ended Nov. 20, the biggest weekly decline since late October, bringing the total rig count down to 564, oil services company Baker Hughes (N:BHI) Inc BHI.N said in its closely followed report. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N13F1DX
Markets eyed on developing geopolitical tensions in the oil-producing Middle East as Jordan's King Abdullah, a U.S. ally, will hold talks in Moscow on Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin on how to tackle "terror groups" led by Islamic State in Syria, an official source said. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N13H0PB
Shares in major equity markets gained on Friday and the euro weakened against the dollar as investors anticipated actions by U.S. and European central banks next month. MKTS/GLOB
A top Fed official said on Saturday that there is a "strong case" for raising interest rates when Federal Reserve policymakers meet next month, as long as U.S. economic data does not disappoint. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N13G0MI