SINGAPORE, Oct 13, 2008 (AFP) - Oil prices were higher in Asia on Monday after world leaders united to tackle a global financial crisis engulfing Europe and the United States, analysts said.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in November was 2.45 dollars higher at 80.15 dollars a barrel, recovering from one-year lows reached on Friday.

The contract had plunged 8.89 dollars to 77.70 at the end of last week, in tandem with a global equities meltdown on fears of recession that would crimp demand for energy.

Brent North Sea crude for November delivery traded 2.18 dollars higher at 76.27 dollars.

On Friday in London, Brent fell by 8.57 dollars to settle at 74.09 dollars.

Oil prices have already plunged from record highs above 147 dollars, reached in July, because of demand worries, dealers said.

But Monday's recovery followed weekend signals by US and European leaders that they have a growing commitment to take joint action to end the turmoil after the Wall Street collapse of investment bank Lehman Brothers unleashed a worldwide crash on stock markets.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who oversees the French presidency of the European Union, said governments would buy into banks to boost their finances and guarantee inter-bank lending.

The European announcement came after the Group of Seven industrialised nations proposed an action plan at weekend meetings in Washington.

'The G7-related announcements over the weekend have a mild positive impact,' said David Moore, a Sydney-based commodity strategist with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

'It is coming against a backdrop of previous extreme pessimism so any news or commitment to take action have a positive effect,' he said.

In another move to confront the crisis, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said Sunday that his government will guarantee all deposits in domestic banks.

Meanwhile, the 12-nation Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced Thursday that it would hold an emergency meeting in Vienna on November 18 to discuss the effects of the international financial crisis.

Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, on Sunday predicted that OPEC would cut oil output at the meeting, the state-run television news website reported.

'I think it's certainly on the cards that OPEC might trim production targets in November but we have to wait and see,' said Moore, adding the cartel will also likely not want to 'exacerbate the difficult economic situation' confronting the world now.