Oil prices fall as fears of imminent OPEC+ output cut recede

Oil prices fall as fears of imminent OPEC+ output cut recede

TOKYO: Oil prices fell on Wednesday, taking a breather from a nearly 4% surge the previous day on receding fears of an imminent output cut by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, a group known as OPEC+.

Global benchmark Brent crude futures fell 21 cents, or 0.2%, to $100.01 a barrel by 0114 GMT, after rising 3.9% on Tuesday. The U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures contract was down 10 cents, or 0.1%, at $93.64 a barrel, having jumped 3.7% the previous day.

Both contracts soared on Tuesday after de facto OPEC leader Saudi Arabia flagged the possibility of introducing cuts to balance a market it described as "schizophrenic", with the paper and physical markets becoming increasingly disconnected.

But potential OPEC+ production cuts may not be imminent and are likely to coincide with the return of Iran to oil markets should that country clinch a nuclear deal with the West, nine OPEC sources told Reuters on Tuesday.

A senior U.S. official told Reuters on Monday that Iran had dropped some of its main demands on resurrecting a deal.

"Tuesday's rally was overdone as many investors knew it would take several months for Iranian oil to flow into the international market even if