Oil prices retreat after early gains

Oil prices fell today as high production levels offset worries about the risk of Middle East supply disruptions, according to traders.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in June fell 10 cents to USD 59.59 a barrel after gaining earlier in the day as tensions in Yemen and Iraq raised concerns about a supply disruption in the crude-rich Middle East.
Brent North Sea crude for July delivery dropped 53 cents to stand at USD 66.28 a barrel in late London deals.
Jasper Lawler, analyst at traders CMC Markets UK, said high US and OPEC production was weighing on prices.

"OPEC shows no sign of letting up in its own fight for market share," he said on Monday.
Oil supplies from leading OPEC producers Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates are already near their highest levels in three decades, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said last week.
Crude futures have fought back a little in recent weeks after prices plummeted more than 60 percent between June and January, as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries refused to cut production despite a global glut.
The move by the 12-nation cartel, which pumps about 30 percent of global crude, was widely taken as an attempt to push US shale producers, which have higher costs, out of the market.