Oil rose to hit a six-month high above $63 a barrel today after Opec kingpin Saudi Arabia said the global economy had strengthened enough to cope with oil at $75 to $80 a barrel. Speaking ahead of Opec's meeting in Vienna on Thursday, Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi said oil prices would continue to rise, recovering from lows near $32 at the turn of the year.

"The price rise is a function of optimism better things are coming in the future," Naimi told reporters in Vienna.

Prices also shot above the key technical level of the 200-day moving average today, for the first time in more than eight months, adding to some analysts' convictions that oil has found a new price floor at $60 and may rise toward $65.

Read more: Upstream Online [1]