Kuwait oil minister says oil may reach $60 by year-end

Kuwaiti oil minister and minister of state for national assembly affairs, Ali al-Omair. (AFP/Getty Images)

Kuwait's oil minister expects crude prices to rise in the second half of 2015, possibly to $60 a barrel by year-end, local newspaper al-Rai cited him as saying on Wednesday.

The recent rebound in oil prices was due to low supplies from high-cost producers and an improvement in the growth rates of the global economy, Oil Minister Ali al-Omair told the paper.

Brent crude held steady above $56 a barrel on Wednesday and US crude briefly rose more than $1, after a smaller-than-expected rise in U.S. crude stocks was viewed by some as a sign that a supply glut was starting to abate.