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Oil ended modestly higher Monday as news that Libya and Nigeria have been invited to join OPECs meeting with other major producers later this month provided support to futures prices, which suffered from a drop of nearly 4% last week.

The two countries had been exempted from the pact among major oil producers, led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, to limit global production and ease a glut of oil that has plagued the industry.

The belief is that rising Libyan and Nigerian output are undermining both the efforts at rebalancing the market and the unity of the OPEC/non-OPEC coalition, Michael Lynch, president of president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research, told MarketWatch.

Whether the group can extract more than some promises [from Libya and Nigeria] remains doubtful at this point, he said. But it is also doubtful whether Nigeria and Libya can continue growing their production.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, August West Texas Intermediate crude CLQ7, +0.23% tacked on 17 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $44.40 a barrel, after tapping a low of $43.65. September Brent LCOU7, +0.60% on Londons ICE Futures exchange, also added 17 cents, or 0.4%, to $46.88.

Prices for WTI and Brent settled Friday at their lowest levels since June 26, according to FactSet data.

Late last week, oil reversed much of the gains seen during the two-week rally from late June, losing nearly 3% on Friday alone, as global oil output remained robust though demand was flat, leaving inventories near historic highs.

Providing some support for oil prices, however, OPEC is considering putting a cap on how much oil members Nigeria and Libya can pump, cartel delegates said.

Its quite remarkable how the supply cut exemptions from some OPEC members have come back to punish the cartel, as production in June climbed to the highest level so far in 2017, said Lukman Otunuga, research analyst at FXTM, in a daily note. With the increasing output from Nigeria and Libya threatening to disrupt the efforts made by the rest of the group to rebalance the markets and not being something that was priced in, the price of oil could remain under pressure.

Libyas crude-oil output has surged to more than one million barrels a day, up from 400,000 in October, while Nigerias output has risen to 1.6 million barrels a day, up from 200,000 barrels a day in October, according to JBC, a Vienna-based energy-industry consultancy.

The two OPEC members have now been invited to a meeting of major oil producers thats planned for July 24 in Russia, according to The Wall Street Journal Monday. The story cited comments from Kuwaits oil minister on the sidelines of an Istanbul oil conference.

Still, the main point of concern for investors is rising U.S. production. Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed U.S. production increasing to nearly 9.34 million barrels a day last week, up from 9.25 million barrels a day the week prior. Production was up nearly 11% from a year ago and nearly back at its 10-month high.

Fridays updated rig count from Baker Hughes Inc. BHGE, -1.79% also point to production increases. Oil producers added seven more rigs to their working fleet, rising to 763, up more than double from the 351 at work a year ago.

Elsewhere on Nymex, prices for petroleum products inched higher. August gasoline RBQ7, -0.10% rose under half a cent to $1.501 a gallon, while August heating oil HOQ7, +0.04% added just over a half penny to $1.454 a gallon.

August natural gas NGQ17, -0.17% settled at $2.929 per million British thermal units, up 6,5 cents, or 2.3%.

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Oil notches a gain as traders weigh output-cap prospects for Libya and Nigeria - MarketWatch

The policy, if approved, would aim to further the existing US goal of supporting reconciliation between rival factions in eastern and western areas of Libya. The policy could also lead to the eventual re-opening of the US embassy and the establishing of a new intelligence sharing effort led by US special forces, according to the officials.

If approved, this would be the latest country in which President Donald Trump is expanding the US counterterrorism effort.

The new approach could lead to more regular visits to Libya by diplomatic personnel, including the US ambassador, who has not been stationed in the country because of the unstable situation.

The US is also considering re-establishing a presence in Benghazi after a 2012 attack that killed four Americans -- and also re-establishing a coordination center for some US forces and Libyan officials to facilitate counterterrorist intelligence sharing. US troops could also carry out a training and advisory role in conjunction with Libyan forces.

It's also expected that if approved, up to 50 US special operations troops could be sent to Libya on a rotating basis to share counterintelligence information.

Officials caution all of this could take months to implement and intelligence sharing and training efforts in Somalia are seen as the model for the new policy.

Small teams of US military and intelligence personnel have gone in and out of Libya in recent years for just a few days at a time to meet and share information with Libyan counterparts.

But it is significant that a more permanent US presence is being considered for the first time since the US closed its embassy in Tripoli in 2014 after the situation deteriorated following the 2012 attack at the US compound in Benghazi that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.

On a practical level, these new strategy goals will be difficult to achieve, the official acknowledged.

The critical challenge continues to be forming a broad national government that would be accepted by both the internationally accepted Government of National Accord led by Prime Minister al Sarraj which controls much of the west of Libya and the Libyan National Army headed by Kalifa Haftar which dominates the east. The official said that the new policy calls for closer cooperation and intelligence sharing with Haftar.

While the intelligence sharing would largely focus on counterterrorism, the US is likely to provide assistance to Libya to address the migration crisis in the country.

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US military considers ramping up Libya presence - CNN International

12:53 Monday 10 July 2017

The government has missed a deadline to respond to critical recommendations that it resolves compensation for Libya-IRA victims by the end of this year.

The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee (NIAC) published a report in May which found successive UK governments had failed to support victims of Libyan-IRA terrorism, while French, American and German governments had successfully pressed Libya to pay compensation.

The committee called on the government to secure compensation by the end of this year.

The late Libyan dictator Col Gaddafi provided millions of pounds and 120 tonnes of weaponry to the IRA, including Semtex.

The government was due to respond to the NIAC report by Friday last week, July 7, but failed to do so.

Lawyer Matt Jury, who helped lead the Omagh bomb civil action and is acting for Libya-IRA victims, said the delay was unacceptable.

Does the government not realise that every time it fails to live up to an expectation, obligation or assurance it is unnecessarily adding to the victims pain and suffering? he said.

The victims have waited too long for this issue to be resolved and delays like this, without explanation, are simply inexcusable.

The inquirys recommendations were clear, as was its position that this matter should be resolved by the end of the year. The inquiry called for action, not procrastination, and the clock is ticking.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office missed its July 7 deadline despite assurances made to the victims lawyers that the deadline would be met, he said.

Victims only learnt of the plan not to respond in time through an answer to a parliamentary question last week, he added.

In an email to some campaigners on the day of the deadline, the FCO said the delay was because government was in purdah for much of the time between May 2 and June 30 due to the election and ministers had only limited time to consider the committees report in detail. It said a response would be given in September.

The government has persistently opposed moves by UUP peer Lord Empey to tap 9.5bn of terror-linked Libyan assets frozen in the UK to compensate victims.

Excerpt from:
Government misses deadline on Libya-IRA report - Belfast Newsletter

Benghazi - The decomposed bodies of 19 Egyptian migrants were found in the Libyan desert overnight after the truck in which they were smuggled into the country overturned, the Red Crescent said Sunday.

The bodies were buried in a cemetery near the Libyan border town of Tobruk, the organisation said.

It was unclear when the Egyptians died but their bodies were in a state of decomposition when found in a desert area near Tobruk in Libya's remote east.

Meanwhile a security official in Tobruk said a search was underway for a group of 29 other Egyptians reported missing by authorities in their country.

Since the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has been riven by chaos, making it the main gateway for African migrants heading for Europe on dangerous Mediterranean crossings.

Human traffickers have exploited the instability to boost their lucrative but deadly trade.

Egyptians have travelled to Libya for decades, to look for jobs in the oil-rich North African country or to use it as a transit route to Europe.

Since January 100 000 migrants have made the perilous sea journey to Europe, around 85 000 of them arriving in Italy from Libya, according to the International Organiaation for Migration.

The United Nations says more than 2 200 migrants have died this year attempting to make the crossing.

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19 bodies of Egyptian migrants found in Libya desert - News24

The Libya Observer

Central and southern regions of Libya go offline The Libya Observer Telecommunication services for central and southern Libyan cities have been cut off, state-owned Libya Telephone Company reported on Monday. On its official Facebook page, the company said a major fiber optic cable for telephone and internet ...

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Central and southern regions of Libya go offline - The Libya Observer