Oil steadied above $56 a barrel on Tuesday after two days of declines as OPEC output cuts and Libyan supply losses balanced concerns about the spread of the coronavirus and its impact on oil demand.
Crude fell almost 4% on Monday, with other commodities also posting losses while U.S. and European equities suffered their steepest declines since mid-2016 on concern the coronavirus outbreak could turn into a pandemic.
Brent crude rose 5 cents to $56.35 a barrel by 09:52 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was down 14 cents at $51.29.
Concern that the virus will spread and curb economic growth and oil demand has pushed down Brent crude by almost $10 a barrel this year despite the involuntary shutdown of most of Libya's output as well as a supply pact between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies.
Source : Reuters