%CrudeOil prices are under pressure after oil cartel OPEC+ extended its output reductions until the second quarter of this year.
In a statement, OPEC+ said that the output reductions are being extended as it tries to support the short-term price stability of crude oil.
News of the extension sent crude prices lower, with Brent declining 0.28% to $83.32 U.S. per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures are down 0.46% at $79.60 U.S. a barrel.
OPEC+ announced late on March 3 that the 2.2 million barrels per day of voluntary output cuts that were planned for the first quarter of this year will continue until the end of June.
Saudi Arabia said it will continue its voluntary cut of one million barrels per day. Its crude production will stand at approximately nine million barrels per day until June 30.
Russia, another OPEC+ member, plans to reduce its crude oil production by a combined 471,000 barrels per day until the end of June.
Other key producers such as Iraq and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will extend their voluntary production cuts of 220,000 barrels per day and 163,000 barrels per day respectively.
Analysts said that the output cut extension shows that OPEC+ is determined to put a floor under crude prices of $80 U.S. per barrel.
Oil prices have been hovering between $75 U.S. and $85 U.S. per barrel since the start of this year, despite ongoing conflict in the Middle East due to Israel’s war with Hamas.
