Oil is holding near $50 a barrel as optimism spurred by OPEC’s output cuts confronts pessimism over rising U.S. supply. Futures in New York were little changed after rising 5.5 percent last week, the biggest weekly gain since December. While OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo said Sunday that he is “cautiously optimistic that the market is already rebalancing” and stockpile levels have started to ease, data on Friday showed the number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose to the highest since September 2015. Barkindo’s comments are bolstering confidence in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ commitment to drain swollen inventories before the group meets May 25 in Vienna. Kuwait and other producers from the group joined with non-member Oman to voice support for an extension of the six-month deal to cut output that began in January. The effects of the curbs have been undermined by a surge […]