2024-02-02T04:43:33+00:00
A-
A
A+
/ OPEC cut oil production last month as the group and its allies make new efforts to support prices and prevent a global surplus.
OPEC production fell by 490,000 barrels per day last month to 26.57 million barrels per day, according to a Bloomberg survey.
About half of the reduction came from Iraq and Kuwait. However, the group’s implementation of its new production cuts has not been in line with the target set by the coalition.
About a quarter of the decline came from unrest in Libya, which is not part of the planned cuts, and overall production remains several hundred thousand barrels per day above the collective ceiling, with Iraq and the UAE producing above their quotas.
OPEC and its allies, led by Saudi Arabia, have pledged additional production cuts this quarter — on top of cuts made last year — as global oil demand growth slows and competing supplies, led by the United States, continue to rise.
Oil markets remain fragile, with prices holding near $80 a barrel in London even as the Middle East conflict rages and Red Sea shipping comes under attack. Prices are lower than they were when Hamas launched its offensive against Israel on Oct. 7.
The survey shows that Kuwait and Algeria have implemented the required cuts, reducing production by 110,000 barrels per day and 50,000 barrels per day, respectively.
Iraq has made significant progress, cutting its output by 130,000 barrels per day to about 4.2 million barrels per day. This has left the country, which is under financial pressure to boost revenues, producing about 200,000 barrels per day above the agreed ceiling.
Libya’s production fell by 120,000 barrels per day to about one million barrels per day, after the largest oil field was closed due to protests that lasted for several weeks.
Implementation of the new cuts by the broader OPEC+ alliance – which includes countries such as Russia and Kazakhstan – has been unclear.