The International Energy Agency (IEA), the intergovernmental body representing Britain and other major western economies, has pleaded with Middle Eastern oil producers to increase supplies in a bid to keep down prices.
The IEA has pledged to use "all tools that are at the disposal of its members" to help if Saudi Arabia and others raised their output in a bid to prevent damage being done to the global economy.
The unusual call came at a quarterly meeting of the IEA's governing body and is clearly designed to put pressure on the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) which holds its own summit in three weeks' time.
"The governing board urges action from producers that will help avoid the negative global economic consequences which a further sharp market tightening could cause, and welcomes commitments to increase supply," the members said in a statement.
"Additional increases in prices at this stage of the economic cycle risk derailing the global economic recovery and are neither in the interest of producing nor of consuming countries," they added.
The call came as crude prices began to rise again for the second day in a row, with Brent blend up 66 cents at $112.96 per barrel after increasing more than $2 the day before.
This upward movement follows almost two weeks of decline, meaning the value of oil has fallen by 10% since the first week of May. The IEA acknowledged that fall but said crude remained "at elevated levels" due to market fundamentals, geopolitical uncertainty and future expectations.
Oil analysts said the latest jump had come from unexpected drop in the amount of oil stored in US refineries but a rise in equity prices and a firm dollar.
Ben Le Brun, a Sydney-based markets analyst at CMC Markets, said: "The data was very unexpected as US crude inventories have been rising. It gave prices a bit of a kick-along."
Oil prices are expected to remain volatile as weak economic data from the United States and the debt crisis in the eurozone fuel concerns about demand, and investors worry that debt-laden Greece and Portugal may drag down other economies.
Opec has already hinted it might increase production but price hawks in the cartel have previously argued that much of the high price is caused by speculators and is outside their control.