February 17, 2025

OPEC+ mulls over delaying supply increase amid market fragility- report

Investing.com -- The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, collectively known as OPEC+, is contemplating a delay in its planned monthly supply increases, which were set to begin in April.

This decision is under consideration despite the request from US President Donald Trump for lower oil prices, Bloomberg News reported.

The global oil markets are currently too unstable to restart production, according to an anonymous delegate involved in the discussions. The group has yet to make a final decision and there is a lack of consensus on the way forward. The final decision is expected to be reached in the upcoming weeks.

If the group decides to delay the modest increase of 120,000 barrels per day, it will be the fourth time that the alliance, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, has postponed plans to resume production. The production has been on hold since 2022. The group's current goal is to restore a total of 2.2 million barrels per day in monthly increments by the end of 2026.

Last week, OPEC's Vienna-based secretariat issued a report highlighting the risks posed by US trade tariffs. The report stated that these measures have introduced more uncertainty into the markets. This uncertainty could potentially lead to supply-demand imbalances that do not reflect market fundamentals, resulting in increased market volatility.

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