OPEC Puts Heads Together Over Oil Output Cuts

Muhammad Irfan Published April 09, 2020 | 06:10 PM

Top oil producers are on Thursday to discuss a possible cut in output after a collapse in demand due to the coronavirus and a Saudi-Russian price war caused the market to crash

London, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Apr, 2020 ) :Top oil producers are on Thursday to discuss a possible cut in output after a collapse in demand due to the coronavirus and a Saudi-Russian price war caused the market to crash.

The teleconference scheduled for 1400 GMT between OPEC, its OPEC+ allies including Russia and other key non-members is seen as the best chance of providing support to prices which are wallowing near two-decade lows.

Experts warn that without concerted action the commodity risks another steep sell-off.

But investors seemed hopeful on Thursday, sending oil prices rising.

Last week US President Donald Trump claimed Russia and Saudi Arabia would step back from their stand-off and agree to slash output.

Then OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia called for an urgent meeting of producers "to try to reach a fair deal" to "stabilise the oil market" following a phone call between its Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Trump.

Thursday's meeting intends to conclude an agreement to cut production by between 10 and 15 million barrels per day, Kuwait's Oil Minister Khaled al-Fadhel said in an interview with the Kuwaiti Al-Rai daily published Thursday.

Late Wednesday a spokesman for the Russian energy ministry told the TASS agency that Moscow was "prepared to cut 1.6 million barrels a day", which would be the equivalent of 14 percent of Russia's production in the first quarter of 2020.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov in a press briefing on Thursday declined to give details, only saying Russia was in favour of "coordinated action to stabilise the global oil market".