Oil prices rise after OPEC curb extension

NEW YORK, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices extended gains Friday, a day after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC oil producers decided to prolong the production cuts for an additional nine months.

At Wednesday's OPEC and non-OPEC ministerial meeting, 24 countries agreed to maintain production cut of about 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) until Dec. 31, 2018.

The meeting also decided to add a provision to review the production cuts based on market fundamentals at the 2018 OPEC meeting in June.

Some analysts worried that the rising in oil prices could fuel more drilling in the United States, which is not party to the agreement.

According to oilfield service firm Baker Hughes' weekly report released Friday, the number of rigs operating in U.S. oil fields rose by 2 to a total of 749 rigs this week, notching the highest level since September.

The West Texas Intermediate for January delivery increased 96 U.S. cents to settle at 58.36 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for February delivery added 1.10 dollars to close at 63.73 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange. Enditem