OPEC basket oil price rises above $40 for first time in 4 months

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' basket oil price rose above $40/bbl for the first time in four months, reflecting higher official selling prices, according to the group's data.

The basket price stood at $42.66/bbl on July 1, almost 12% higher than the previous day, and the highest since March 3, the data showed.

The rise, which comes despite more modest gains over the same period in Brent futures prices, reflects higher official selling prices for many producers in the group including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE and Iraq that kicked in at the start of the month, two OPEC sources said.