* There was no activity in the window.

* A trader said that Urals cargoes were sold out in the Mediterranean for January and mostly sold out in northwest Europe. February dates were expected to start emerging next week.

* Delays through the Turkish straits, still around two weeks, and the Christmas holidays prompted many to buy ahead of time.

* Greek refiner Hellenic issued a buy tender for a cargo of Kazakh CPC Blend. The tender closes on Jan. 8.

* The final programme for CPC Blend was slightly lower for January at 5.42 million tonnes.

* Libya's major western oilfield El Sharara was still closed.