Saudi Arabia and Russia, the world’s two largest crude producers, agreed to freeze output after talks in Qatar, informed Bloomberg.
Saudi Arabia, Russia to Freeze Oil Output at Near-Record Levels
STEPANAKERT, FEBRUARY 16, ARTSAKHPRESS: The deal to fix production at January levels will be “adequate” and Saudi Arabia still wants to meet the demand of its customers, Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi said in Doha after the talks with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak. Qatar and Venezuela also agreed to participate, Al-Naimi said. The freeze is conditional on other nation’s agreeing to participate, Russia’s Energy Ministry said in a statement. Oil pared gains in London, after rising before the meeting amid speculation the countries would discuss production cuts.
“This is an announcement of a production freeze among countries whose production didn’t even grow recently,” said Eugen Weinberg, head of commodities research at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt. “If Iran and Iraq are not a part of the agreement, it’s not worth much -- and even then there is still a question of compliance.”
