The oil prices They closed lower on Thursday after Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak downplayed the possibility of further OPEC+ production cuts at their meeting next week. Thus, the price of a barrel of oil ended a series of rises of four consecutive days by falling back today in New York.
Oil futures ended lower for the first time in four sessions after a senior Russian official downplayed the possibility of further output cuts when OPEC+ meets early next month.
the barrel of the Brent variety fell 2.7% to US$76.30 and the West Texas Intermediate in the United States (WTI), which is traded in the United States, fell 3.2% and traded at US$72.
“I don’t think there will be any new measures, because just a month ago certain decisions were made on the voluntary reduction of oil production by some countries…” Novak was quoted as saying by daily Izvestia.
OPEC announcements confuse the market
The main producers of the OPEC+ have issued a series of conflicting messages in recent days about the next steps on oil policy, making it especially difficult to predict the outcome of the next meeting.
Crude prices were supported by a warning from Saudi Arabia’s energy minister on Tuesday to short-term sellers betting on falling oil prices to “be careful.”
Some investors interpreted this warning as a sign that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, including Russia, collectively called OPEC+, could consider further production cuts at the June 4 meeting.
They expect unilateral cuts from some countries
“The obvious reading is that the Kingdom could unilaterally cut oil production or orchestrate a broader cut in OPEC+, thereby supporting prices and goading speculators who are shorting oil,” analysts at MUFG bank said.
Just a week before Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman’s comment, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that it was necessary to cut oil production to maintain a certain price level.
Uncertainty about the US debt ceiling also weighed on prices. Indeed, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Thursday that some progress had been made, but that several issues remained to be resolved in the negotiations, as the deadline for raising the debt ceiling of the federal government of US$31.4 billion or risked default.
Source: Ambito
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