Crude up in Asia on bargain-hunting

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SINGAPORE: Oil markets rose in Asian trade Tuesday as traders snapped up cheap crude after European and US debt woes pulled prices down, analysts said.

New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) light sweet crude for delivery in August, gained 38 cents to $96.31 per barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for September delivery added 41 cents to $116.46.

"I think today is just pretty much a relief rally on the back of heavily sold oil prices yesterday," said Serene Lim, an oil and gas analyst for ANZ bank in Singapore.

Crude prices had slumped on Monday -- with WTI falling 1.35 percent -- as traders fretted over the US debt impasse and the state of Europe's economy as Greece risked defaulting on its debts.

Eurozone leaders were preparing for an emergency summit to be held on Thursday to explore methods of preventing a Greek default, which could have destabilising effects on larger European economies.

Meanwhile, US senators were struggling to bridge a deep partisan divide and forge a compromise deal to raise the federal government's debt ceiling by August 2 in order to avert a potentially disastrous default as well.

In the absence of significant developments on these fronts at the moment, crude traders were "still very much uncertain about the market", ANZ bank's Lim said. (AFP)