Surging oil prices have cooled down after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) backed a Saudi plan to raise the group's oil production ceiling by 10.6 percent.

U.S. light crude oil for July delivery fell 2.37 dollars to settle at 39.96 dollars per barrel on Wednesday. A day earlier, it shot up to 42.33 dollars ? the highest price in the contract's 21-year history on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In London, July contracts of Brent crude settled at 36.86 dollars, down 2.22 dollars from Tuesday's closing price.

Arriving in Beirut Wednesday for their meeting, OPEC members expressed a common desire to send a strong signal to oil markets that the group would boost production and ensure that crude supplies remained plentiful. They gathered for joint talks ahead of a formal meeting Thursday on OPEC's production policy.