Investing.com - Oil prices kicked off the week with modest losses on Monday, as market players continued to look for signs that major oil producers are adhering to planned output cuts.
Crude oil for February delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped 12 cents, or around 0.25%, to $52.25 a barrel by 10:15AM ET (15:15GMT).
Elsewhere, Brent oil for March delivery on the ICE Futures Exchange in London shed 10 cents, or 0.2%, to $55.36 a barrel.
Trading is likely to be quiet because U.S. markets are closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
January 1 marked the official start of the deal agreed by OPEC and non-OPEC member countries such as Russia in November last year to reduce output by almost 1.8 million barrels per day.
The deal, if carried out as planned, should reduce global supply by about 2%.
However, some traders remain skeptical that the planned cuts will be as substantial as the market currently expects.
While some major oil producers, such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, have so far showed signs that they are sticking to their pledge to cut back output, others, such as Libya have ramped up production.
Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said on Monday that the kingdom will adhere strictly to its commitment to cut output under the global agreement, expressing confidence that OPEC's plan to prop up prices would work.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an industry event in Abu Dhabi, Falih added that OPEC and non-OPEC producers are unlikely to extend their agreement to cut oil output beyond six months, citing the level of compliance with the deal and the rebalancing of the market.
OPEC plans to release its monthly oil report on Wednesday, while the International Energy Agency’s monthly report is due the day after, as traders look for further evidence that oil producers are adhering to planned output cuts.
Elsewhere on Nymex, gasoline futures for February ticked down 0.4 cents, or 0.25% to $1.608 a gallon, while February heating oil was little changed at $1.650 a gallon.
Natural gas futures for February delivery jumped 5.2 cents, or 1.5%, to $3.471 per million British thermal units, after touching a two-week high earlier amid colder forecasts for the end of January.