NEW YORK, Nov 15 — Oil prices bounced up yesterday, as hopes for output cuts fueleld a partial rebound from the previous session's steep decline, and the euro and sterling gained as British Prime Minister Theresa May obtained her cabinet's backing for her Brexit deal.

A gauge of global stock markets fell for a fifth straight session, following a volatile session on Wall Street that left major US indexes well in the red.

US natural gas futures surged 17.9 per cent and are at their highest levels since the polar vortex winter of 2013-14 on forecasts for frigid weather. Oil rose after 12 straight days of losses on the prospect that Opec and allied producers will cut output at a meeting next month.

US crude settled up 1 per cent at US$56.25 (RM235.73) per barrel and Brent settled at US$66.12 a barrel, up 1 per cent. Benchmark Brent has fallen more than 20 percent since early October on concerns about excess supply and slowing demand.

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“Maybe some of the fears of extra supplies and reduced demand have finally been priced into the market, but I wouldn't say that a bottom has set in yet,” said Gene McGillian, vice president of market research for Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut.

Major US stock indexes slid but ended off of session lows.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index lost 0.60 per cent.

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European shares hit their lowest in two weeks in a broad-based sell-off across oil, mining, technology and banking stocks amid renewed worries about a global economic slowdown and Italy's budget crisis.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe shed 0.43 per cent, its fifth straight daily decline.

The euro and sterling gained as May obtained backing from her cabinet on her Brexit deal, which she now has to convince parliament to approve.

Sterling was last trading at US$1.2999, up 0.22 per cent on the day, with the euro up 0.23 percent to US$1.1315.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, fell 0.35 per cent.

US Treasury yields fell as investors fretted that renewed weakness on Wall Street could signal problems in the world's largest economy.

Benchmark 10-year Treasury notes last rose 5/32 in price to yield 3.1268 per cent, from 3.145 per cent late on Tuesday. — Reuters