Saudi Arabia seeks OPEC+ oil quota cut to stabilise global markets

As oil prices plunge, Saudi Arabia has urged members of the OPEC+ coalition to cut their oil-output quotas in an effort to stabilise global markets, but some members are resisting the proposal, according to reports. The OPEC+ leader has independently implemented a supply reduction of 1 million barrels a day since July and is now seeking additional support from members within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its partners, delegates familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. The Saudi proposal comes amid challenging discussions within the producers’ group, leading to a four-day delay in the policy meeting to November 30. Angola and Nigeria are reportedly resisting reductions to their quota limits for 2024, as initially set at the cartel’s last conference in June. While progress toward a compromise was underway before the weekend, an agreement has yet to be finalized, Bloomberg reported. The sharp selloff in oil prices has come despite a supply deficit due to OPEC+ cuts, in the fourth quarter and the risk of further supply disruption due to escalating tensions in the Middle East, as investors fret about burgeoning non-OPEC supply and softening demand in major economies. Saudi Arabia, Russia and other members of OPEC+ have already pledged total oil output cuts of about 5 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 5% of daily global demand, in a series of steps that started in late 2022. The Kingdom first made the voluntary cut of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) for July and extended it to the end of the year, as an addition to a broad supply-limiting OPEC+ deal. With inputs from agencies.