Increased output from Opec coupled with sluggish demand could see the oil market turning a corner, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday.

The combination of these factors had led to a potential global build in stocks of 1 million barrels over the last quarter, the agency said in its monthly report.

"The cycle of repeatedly tightening fundamentals since 2009 has been broken for now," it said.

The agency, which advises 28 industrialised nations on energy policy, said it was not surprising that extra barrels were being sent into storage in the typically slacker demand period of March and April.

For 2012, the agency retained its forecast for oil consumption growth of by 800,000 bpd, barely changed from last month's forecast.         

"We cannot discount the possibility that prices will remain high so long as geopolitical uncertainties remain," the IEA said. - Reuters