•ICE Brent futures were trading 55 cents/barrel lower at $71.48/b Tuesday during morning European trade, but volumes were on the low side and trading was mostly quiet ahead of the expiry of the NYMEX November light, sweet crude contract.

•"November WTI expires today and given the distortion of the previous expiry we would expect many market participants to stay on the sidelines fearing the repeat of the firework display seen a month ago," Olivier Jakob, Petromatrix analyst, said in a report.

•Signs of recovery in the US economy were supportive of commodity prices Monday, sources said, but energy futures did not hold on to yesterday's gains despite the US Dollar Index on ICE extending its four-week rally.

Updated: October 21, 2008