The world has to expect a deeper-the-expected cut to global oil production as the bi-annual meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Producing Countries (OPEC) with its allies, including Russia and other non-OPEC producers kick off in Vienna, Thursday.
OPEC plus reportedly agreed to an addition 500,000 barrels per day cut, which brings down their total production to 1.7 million barrels per day. The meeting of the 14-member cartel ended just after 11 p.m. local time. Initially, it was unclear whether or not a new agreement has been reached, but Iran’s oil minister reportedly said that a deal has already been reached, although he refused to comment further.
Sources said that the organization still had multiple issues to resolve, and just before 4 p.m. ET OPEC announced that it was canceling the press conference that was customarily scheduled after the first day of the meeting. On Friday, the OPEC plus will resume the meeting to finalize proposed measures and determine the cuts that are to be implemented in each member country.
In after-hours trading international benchmark, Brent crude gained 21 cents to trade at $63.21. U.S. West Texas Intermediate shed 10 cents to trade at $58.33.
