US light crude rose US$2 to settle at US$83.45 a barrel. London Brent added 57 cents to settle at US$84.80.

The oil price had fallen by about US$4 since fraud charges filed in the US against Goldman Sachs on Friday shook market sentiment.

The price of oil hit an 18-month high earlier this month.

Goldman Sachs reported a net profit of US$3.5bn for the first three months of the year nearly double the profit it posted a year earlier.

This helped to consolidate earlier gains in the oil price.

Goldman has rejected allegations by the US financial watchdog that it defrauded investors.

The oil price was also boosted by news that some European airports were reopening.

Demand for oil, and therefore its price, dipped sharply while planes were grounded across the world because of the Icelandic volcano eruption last Thursday.