A woman passes by a logo of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) during the United Nations climate change conference COP29, in Baku, Azerbaijan November 13, 2024.
Maxim Shemetov | Reuters
Oil prices rose on Thursday as OPEC+ members agreed to delay crude production increases.
U.S. crude oil rose 50 cents, or 0.73%, to $69.04 per barrel in mid-morning trading. Brent crude futures gained 46 cents, or 0.64%, to $72.77 per barrel.
Eight OPEC+ members led by Saudi Arabia and Russia will keep voluntary production cuts of 2.2 million barrels per day in place until the end of March 2025.
The cuts will then be gradually phased out on a monthly basis until the end of September 2026 to “support market stability,” according to a statement from the countries. The members will also keep a separate round of production cuts of 1.65 million bpd in place through December 2026.
OPEC+ members, consisting of the original OPEC states plus 10 that are loosely affiliated, including Russia, Mexico and Kazakhstan, are struggling to bring barrels back to the global market. That goal is stymied prices that are already under pressure from soft demand in China and strong production in the U.S.
The Paris-based International Energy Agency has warned that global supply will exceed demand by 1 million barrels per day next year, even if the current OPEC+ cuts remain in place.
