This could come as soon as next week, as OPEC representatives might hold an extraordinary meeting following informal talks on the sidelines of the International Energy Forum (IEF) next week in Algeria.
Advertisement
“The Saudi talks with Iran increase the likelihood of an agreement next week”, said Bob Yawger, director of the futures division at Mizuho Securities USA in NY. While Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said members are close to a deal, all but two of 23 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg said an agreement to limit production is unlikely. The planned talks signal that OPEC may reconsider a Saudi-led policy the group adopted in 2014 that lets members boost output to defend their market share.
Brent for November settlement rose as much as 53 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $47.36 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. According to the Investor’s Business Daily, oil minister Khalid al-Falih said in August that a freeze wasn’t necessary, while Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir claimed the government would accept a production cap.
Russia’s September output of just over 11 million barrels per day was the highest monthly average since the Soviet Era, Bloomberg says.
OPEC’s last attempt to reach a deal, which also involved Russian Federation, the largest non-OPEC producer, fell apart in Doha in mid-April when Saudi Arabia insisted that Iran also had to freeze production.
The next big event on the economic calendar is the OPEC meeting in Algeria next week. Iran had refused because it was just starting to revive exports after the end of worldwide sanctions.
Advertisement
On Wednesday, Russian Deputy Energy Minister Kirill Molodtsov said that the ministry anticipated that the volume of oil production in 2016 would amount to 540-545 million tons.
