Crude oil was relatively insulated from the losses in other complexes and managed to stay above $69 barrel as geopolitical tension and Chinese buying lent support. Natural Gas too remained firm supported by the colder weather forecast.

Net long crude positions held by the key speculator group fell to 60,002 during the week, down from 98,031 in the week to Sept. 29, helping to lower overall non-commercial net longs. The reduction came as crude oil prices fell about $5 to $66 a barrel on rising inventories and weak demand.

Russia's monthly oil production exceeded 10 million barrels per day in September for the first time, approximately 25 percent more than the total pumped by nearest rival Saudi Arabia as OPEC persists with output cuts. Russia, now the world's largest oil producer, pumped 10.01 million barrels per day last month, up 0.4 percent from the 9.97 million bpd produced in August, which was also a record high at the time, Energy Ministry data released on Friday showed.

President Barack Obama's top security adviser on Sunday dismissed a report that Iran was closer to making an atomic bomb and said Iranian cooperation in the last few weeks was good for nuclear non-proliferation. IAEA chief Mohammed El Baradei announced on Sunday in Tehran that the U. N. nuclear watchdog will inspect the site on Oct. 25, and he praised a shift "from conspiracy to cooperation" in Iran's dealing with the West.

Crude oil prices remained firm last week due to geopolitical tensions and reports of Chinese buying to add to their strategic petroleum reserves but it seems that geopolitical tension may subside after President Barack Obama's top security adviser's statement. We may see some profit taking in crude oil whereas natural gas is likely to trade firm during the day.