Investing.com - OPEC is looking to a key report due Friday to gauge if last week's slump in oil prices reflects a positioning washout as opposed to a structural change as U.S. shale activity gathers pace.
Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate shed some 9% last week. Oil futures remained under pressure on Monday.
The CFTC Commitment of Traders report due Friday will provide information on traders' positions as of last Friday.
Speculative long positions in oil had reached record positions.
If the figures point to a structural change, then Saudi Arabia in particular faces the triple whammy of lower output, lost market share combined with potentially reduced prices.
The kingdom has shouldered most of the burden of reining in production by 1.8 million barrels a day in the first half under an agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC producers.
Russia has so far cut output by only 150,000 barrels a day out of an agreed quota of 300,000 barrels a day.
Baker Hughes data Friday showed another increase in the number of rigs operating in the U.S.
Technological advances have allowed U.S. producers to be profitable at lower prices.
Support for Brent crude lies at $50.17 a barrel, while initial resistance is at the 100-day moving average of $52.34.
After falling below $50 a barrel last week, support for West Texas Intermediate sits at Monday's low of below $48 and resistance at the 100-day moving average of $50.47.