Oil prices eased back below 59 usd a barrel in Asian trading hours as the market paused for breath ahead of another likely push towards 60 usd, dealers said. At midday (0400 GMT) here, New York's main contract, light sweet crude for July delivery, was at 58.93 usd a barrel, down 0.44 usd from its close of 59.37 usd in the US overnight. The beginning of the week had seen prices surge past 59 usd for the first time, hitting a peak of 59.52 usd in New York, as speculators seized upon concerns about possible energy shortages towards the end of this year. In one month, prices have risen by more than 27 pct in New York and 22 pct in London. World crude prices have jumped by 40 pct since the start of 2005. Daniel Hynes, a commodities analyst with ANZ bank in Melbourne, Australia, said the factors that had driven up prices remain in play despite the easing in Asian trading today. "I think we are seeing the market take a bit of a breather. It just seems to be baulking at that 60 usd mark, which is quite expected because it's a psychological barrier," Hynes said. "I certainly think everything is still pointing towards a continuation of this upward trend." Hynes said the New York contract would likely break through 60 usd in US trading, with Wednesday's weekly report of US inventory levels to have an influence. "The US Energy Department's data will be a key point which could tip it either way, but it would have to be a fairly bearish report [showing stocks had increased] to see oil ease back from current rises," he said. OPEC president Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahd al-Sabah said yesterday that he would hold talks on hiking output by an additional 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) if prices remained high for the rest of this week. OPEC's 11 members last week agreed to raise the group's production ceiling by 500,000 bpd on July 1 and said they might repeat the move by September. The move was largely seen as a symbolic gesture because the cartel is already pumping more oil than its current official ceiling of 27.5 million bpd.