On Wednesday of next week, the 23-nation “OPEC +” coalition is to convene in person for the first time since March 2020 at its headquarters in Vienna, Austria.
According to a statement from the Secretariat of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the alliance will discuss cutting oil production to stem the recent drop in prices (OPEC).
In addition, JPMorgan Chase suggested that in order to stabilise prices, the “OPEC Plus” alliance may need to cut production by at least 500,000 barrels per day.
The alliance might choose to reduce production by twice that amount, according to Helima Croft, chief commodity analyst at RBC Capital Markets.
The group was holding monthly virtual meetings and did not anticipate holding an in-person gathering until at least the end of 2022.
Since then, Brent has dropped to $85 per barrel as central banks increase interest rates to combat inflation and slow economies from the US to China, reducing the enormous windfall profits enjoyed by the Saudis and their allies, even if Brent crude recently increased to $125 per barrel. after February 2022, when Russian military activities in Ukraine begin.
The announcement of the meeting came a day after Alexander Novak, the Russian Deputy Prime Minister and in charge of liaising with “OPEC +,” was subjected to sanctions by the US following Moscow’s annexation of four areas in Ukraine.
When asked if Austria would be content with a visit by a top Russian official to Vienna, a foreign ministry spokeswoman responded that “the individual in question is not currently covered under EU sanctions.” The European Union is set to impose additional penalties of its own on Moscow.
Due to Russia’s membership in the informal and broad “OPEC Plus” alliance, OPEC does not have diplomatic standing in the capital of Austria.
In 2016, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which is made up of 13 nations, partnered with 10 additional significant producers, among them Russia.
During a prior meeting on September 5th, “OPEC +” reaffirmed its preparedness to stabilise the market with a symbolic cut, and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman pledged that day that the alliance would continue to be “proactive and active” to deal with extreme price swings.
International banks anticipate that Vienna’s production will decrease as a result of OPEC+.
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