OPEC+ agrees on modest output boost from August

OPEC+ agrees on modest output boost from August

VIENNA: The world's leading oil producers agreed yesterday to continue to modestly boost output from August, after the United Arab Emirates blocked a deal earlier this month. An OPEC+ meeting agreed to raise output by 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) each month from August to help fuel a global economic recovery as the pandemic eases, the Vienna-based group said in a press statement.

The grouping will "assess market developments" in December, it said. The deal also extends a deadline on capping output from April 2022 to the end of 2022. Earlier in July, negotiations of OPEC+ members on easing production cuts became deadlocked due to a row between the world's largest oil exporter Saudi Arabia and neighboring United Arab Emirates.

Since May, the 23-member grouping, which also includes Russia, had raised oil output bit by bit, after slashing it more than a year ago when the coronavirus pandemic crushed demand. The aim was to return to pre-pandemic production levels, with the alliance still pumping 5.8 million bpd less than it was before the pandemic.

In a rare challenge to OPEC leader Saudi Arabia, the UAE rejected the proposed deal earlier this month as "unjust", leading to a stalemate. But in a compromise, yesterday's