West Texas Intermediate futures for April delivery edged down to $32.75 (-0.9%), while Brent crude rose to $35.65 (+0.59%). Last week crude oil prices rose more than 15%. Some analysts started to say that prices may be bottoming out after a dramatic drop from the August 2013 high of $112.24.

The number of open positions in WTI crude contracts that bet on a further decline is still high by historical standards; however it has fallen by about 17% since the middle of February.

Data on Chinese manufacturing due tomorrow will help clarify further direction of oil prices.