Oil prices have been falling along with other asset classes due to concerns about a weak global economy and weak data from China, the world’s largest oil importer.
“Done,” said one of the sources. All three sources declined to be identified by name.
The news lifted oil prices by more than a dollar, with Brent crude futures trading at $73.72 a barrel by 1408 GMT. It fell to its lowest level of the year on Wednesday.
The expected increase was 180,000 barrels a day, part of about 5.86 million bpd in output that OPEC+ is holding back equivalent to about 5.7% of global demand. Last week, OPEC+, which is made up of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies led by Russia, was set to proceed with the increase. Fragile oil market sentiment over the prospect of more OPEC+ supply and the end of a dispute halting Libyan exports, along with a weakening demand outlook, have raised concerns within the group. HSBC said in a report that any decision by OPEC+ could be taken negatively by the market.
“The increase in production would put the market in significant surplus from the first quarter of 2025 onwards. On the other hand, the postponement can be interpreted as a late admission by OPEC “that oil demand is weak.”
RBC Capital analyst Helima Croft said in a note that it may be prudent for OPEC+ to wait until December before returning additional barrels.
The planned October increase was to come from OPEC+ members who agreed in June to begin unwinding the group’s most recent layer of output cuts — a 2.2 million bpd reduction by eight countries — from October 2024 to September 2025.
The remaining cuts of 3.66 million bpd, agreed in earlier steps, will remain in place until the end of 2025.
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