Crude oil prices moved modestly higher in early Friday trading as a forecast for recovery in part trumped indications of a looming bear market.

West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, gained eight tenths of a percent in early Friday trading to $48.84 per barrel. Brent crude oil prices held relatively steady at $55.25 per barrel. The indices are down 17 percent and 12 percent, respectively, since July 1 and more than 20 percent lower than June levels, indicating crude oil is trading in a bear market.

WTI peaked for the year at $61.30 in early June, while Brent topped out at $66.33 in May.

Crude oil prices have moved lower amid data showing markets still favor the supply side even as oil services companies from Baker Hughes to Weatherford International issue grim forecasts for the road ahead.

For North America in particular, Weatherford said it didn't expect market conditions to "improve significantly in the balance of the year."

A report this week from the World Bank said all commodity price indices are expected to fall through 2015, but it nevertheless raised its forecast for the year-end price of oil because of an increase in demand, especially in the United States.

The World Bank's assessment was foreshadowed last week by Paal Kibsgaard, the top executive at rig services company Schlumberger, who said the North American market specifically may be "touching the bottom."

Analysts at investment firm UBS said during a Friday conference in Australia they were sticking with their expectations that Brent would recover to above $70 per barrel next year and possibly north of $100 per barrel within three years.