Key ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies, collectively known as OPEC+, will meet on Thursday to discuss their output policy. They are unlikely to make any changes to their current production cuts and will begin unwinding some of them from October, even in the face of recent sharp declines in oil prices.
The online joint ministerial monitoring committee meeting (JMMC) will be held at 1100 GMT and will include top ministers from OPEC+ countries, led by Russia. Four OPEC+ sources told that no changes to the current plan are expected, echoing comments made earlier in the week.
Oil prices have fallen from a 2024 high above $92 a barrel in April to below $82, pressured by concerns about demand strength. However, the market has found some support this week due to increasing tensions in the Middle East.
Currently, OPEC+ is cutting output by 5.86 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 5.7% of global demand, through a series of steps agreed upon since late 2022. In its last meeting in June, the group agreed to extend cuts of 3.66 million bpd until the end of 2025. Additionally, a more recent cut of 2.2 million bpd by eight members was extended by three months until the end of September 2024.
The current plan calls for OPEC+ to gradually phase out the 2.2 million bpd cuts from October 2024 to September 2025. The JMMC, which includes oil ministers from Saudi Arabia, Russia, and other leading producers, meets every two months and can make recommendations to the wider OPEC+ group.
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