Oil prices climbed Friday, recovering slightly from a sell-off caused by news that U.S. stockpiles had reached record highs, adding to worries about a global supply glut.

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate for April, a new contract, gained 35 cents to $52.18 while Brent added 33 cents to $60.54.

Dozens of angry clients of Portugal's recently collapsed Banco Espirito Santo (BES) stormed a branch of its successor Novo Banco on Thursday demanding the pay-back of bonds representing their life-savings.

In the third such incident in recent weeks, around 100 people swarmed Novo Banco's Coimbra agency in central Portugal shouting "thieves", "crooks" and "we want our money back", Portugal's Lusa news agency said.

Germany and Greece face off again Friday in search of a last minute bailout compromise, with Berlin insisting Athens accept continued austerity in return for fresh aid.

After days of sharp exchanges, the 19 eurozone finance ministers gather for their third meeting in little over a week to consider a take-it or leave-it proposal by Athens that they extend an EU loan programme which expires this month.

Russia's Gazprom on Thursday started supplying gas directly to the rebel-controlled area in east Ukraine after pro-Moscow separatist leaders said Kiev had cut supplies, the company's chief said.

"From 1600 (1300 GMT) on February 19, Gazprom is supplying gas to Ukraine including through the Prokhorovka and Platovo gas metering stations to an amount of 12 million cubic meters per 24 hours," said Alexei Miller, quoted by RIA Novosti news agency.

Qatar said Thursday it will introduce a major labor law reform to ensure thousands of workers building venues for the 2022 World Cup are paid on time, after complaints by rights groups.

The changes by the future hosts of football's biggest tournament, approved by Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, will see workers get paid at least once a month and in some cases every fortnight. 

Greece on Thursday formally asked the EU for a loan extension which would buy the cash-strapped nation time to unveil new anti-austerity reforms, a government source said.

"The request has been sent" to Brussels, the source said, with Greek media reports noting that Athens is requesting a six-month assistance package.

A 14-day strike by Air France pilots had a devastating effect on the results of Europe's second-largest airline, the group said Thursday, as it published its annual figures.

Air France-KLM booked a net loss of 198 million euros ($226 million) in 2014, the Franco-Dutch group said in a statement.

Inflation in France, the eurozone's second-biggest economy, was negative in January for the first time in more than five years, the national statistics agency said on Thursday.

Prices declined by 0.4 percent in January compared to the same month last year, INSEE said, noting that France has not seen negative inflation since October 2009.

Oil prices fell Thursday ahead of the release of a closely watched report that is forecast to show a surge in US stockpiles to 33-year high, adding to a global supply glut.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate fell $1.46 to $50.68 while Brent eased 98 cents to $69.55.

Investigators launched a search Wednesday of British banking giant HSBC's Geneva offices as part of a money laundering probe following allegations the bank helped clients evade millions of dollars in taxes, Swiss prosecutors said.

"Following the recent revelations related to the HSBC Private Bank (Switzerland), the public prosecutor announces the opening of a criminal procedure against the bank... for aggravated money laundering," Geneva prosecutors said in a statement.