Oil prices rebound sharply

Global oil prices soared Tuesday to one-month peaks on simmering Syria tensions, rebounding equities, the weak dollar, and upbeat comments from energy major Shell.

In late afternoon London deals, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in November rallied $2.45 to $51.71 per barrel.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in November jumped $2.03 to $48.29 a barrel compared with Monday's close.

Meanwhile, oil industry movers and shakers descended on London for the annual Oil & Money event, where Royal Dutch Shell chief executive Ben van Beurden expressed cautious confidence in a price recovery.

OPEC, which had previously defended price levels by cutting output when necessary, switched strategy in November 2014 when it opted to leave its production target unchanged.

The cartel has since stuck to this plan, keeping its output target level at 30 million barrels per day, in a Saudi-led strategy aimed at squeezing out high-cost US shale producers.

OPEC, whose 12 members pump one third of the world's crude, will hold its next scheduled output meeting on December 4.

Additional price support came Tuesday from the flagging greenback, which makes dollar-priced oil cheaper for buyers using stronger currencies. 

The dollar has been hit by growing expectations that the Federal Reserve will delay until 2016 its first rate-hike in years.

Oil prices had earlier dipped, weighed down by abundant supplies that have plagued the market for months.

The market had rallied Monday, following stocks higher and finding support from a drop in US drilling activity that could ease the global oversupply.