Oil prices rise over 1% after OPEC+ meeting

Global oil prices rose by over 1% on Thursday following the OPEC+ ministerial meeting, at which member countries asserted their readines to take additional measures to deal with new market developments.

Markets are also underpinned by the sharp decline in US crude production last week according to official EIA data, which overshadowed an unexpected buildup in crude stocks.

Prices 

US crude rose 1.2% to $76.80 a barrel, while Brent added 1.1% to $81.41 a barrel, the lowest since $80.18. 

US crude lost 2.5% on Wednesday, while Brent shed 2.3% on profit-taking off two-month highs.

Oil prices rose 5.5% on average in January amid rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and amid a positive outlook on global demand in 2024.

OPEC+ 

Just now, the OPEC+ ministerial meeting wrapped up with oil production data for November and December 2023 reviewed. 

The meeting maintained OPEC’s decision to cut output by 2.2 million bpd this year. 

The Committee asserted the strong cohesion between OPEC countries and OPEC+ nations and their preparations to intervene if needed.

US Production 

The Energy Information Administration announced a drop of 300 thousand bpd in US crude output last week, the largest weekly decline since September 2021, bringing total output to 13 million bpd. 

US Stocks

The EIA also reported a rise of 1.2 million barrels in US commercial stocks last week, while analysts expected a drop of 0.8 million barrels.