Mubasher: Oil prices retreated on Monday, amid suspicions that the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will reach an agreement to trim production in their upcoming meeting.
Brent crude futures fell 0.3% to $47.11 per barrel by 7:10am GMT, while US crude for January delivery shed 0.2% to $45.95 pb.
Saudi oil minister Khalid Al-Falih announced Sunday that the Kingdom's representative would not attend Monday's technical meetings as OPEC had not yet come to an agreement.
OPEC is scheduled to convene in Vienna on Wednesday, 30 November to tackle the issue of cutting production by around 1 million barrels per day, in order to reduce the supply glut and accordingly boost oil prices.
Crude prices dropped by more than 3% on Friday, amid a spat by OPEC and non-OPEC producers and the method for trimming supplies.
