Russian energy officials discussed with their OPEC counterparts the situation on global oil markets and other questions affecting their mutual relationship at a meeting in Vienna, the Russian Energy Ministry said in a statement.
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Aug 17 Oil prices fell away from 5-week highs early on Wednesday, as analysts doubted a successful outcome from producer talks to rein in ballooning oversupply.
Brent for October settlement was 11 cents higher at $48.46 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.
Brent was down at $48.58 today, while WTI crude was down at $46.13 per barrel on Wednesday but then rose to $49.23. Despite the dip, prices remained over 15 percent higher than the monthly $41.51 per barrel low from August 2.
U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate for September delivery gained 28 cents to $46.02 compared with Monday’s close.
In the 12 months to June, Venezuela’s crude output fell 9 percent to 2.36 million barrels per day (bpd), and internal trade and supply data seen by Reuters show that state-controlled oil firm PDVSA’s crude exports, which account for 94 percent of the country’s hard currency income, fell to 1.19 million bpd in July, excluding independent sales made by its joint ventures. Saudi Arabia’s oil minister Khalid Al-Falih has hinted that producers could discuss actions to stabilize prices.
Although OPEC production is expected to fall back a bit in August after having reached an 8-year peak in July as a result of increased Saudi output, storage levels remain elevated.
Oil prices extended their rally on Tuesday following Russia’s oil minister’s comments that they are also meeting with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in October.
Industry sources say the kingdom, already the world’s largest oil exporter, started to raise production from June, after holding it steady for the first half of the year, to meet rising seasonal domestic demand as well as higher exports requirements.
Saudi Arabia could boost crude output in August to new records at 10.8-10.9 million barrels per day, the Reuters report said, quoting OPEC sources. Top exporter Saudi Arabia appears to want higher prices although Iran, Iraq and Russian Federation present obstacles to a deal, the sources said.
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This time around, September’s OPEC meeting is an informal one set to take place in Algiers, with a main agenda of talks surrounding the tightening of oil output.
