Oil prices started the week in negative territory on expectations that a sustained recovery is still a long way off. U.S. crude snapped a seven-week losing streak last week after bullish comments by an international energy watchdog. But analysts said they see little evidence that the combination of oversupply and sluggish demand that has pummeled prices since last summer is abating. Brent crude for March delivery fell 1.3% to $49.52 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in February flirted with $48 a barrel in recent trade, down 1.5% from Friday’s settlement. “Despite a nearly 60% fall in oil prices since mid-2014, oil market balances remain weak, with prospects of a recovery looking dim until the latter months of 2015,” Barclays analysts said in a report over the weekend. Oil markets rallied on Friday after the International […]