Islamabad, Dec 9: Eight members of the OPEC+ group of oil-exporting nations decided to delay increasing oil production due to lower-than-anticipated demand and growing output from non-member countries.
The group initially planned to restore 2.2 million barrels per day starting on January 1, 2025, but it will now postpone this until April 1, 2025
The production increases will occur gradually over 18 months, concluding in October 2026.
OPEC+, led by Saudi Arabia within the OPEC cartel and including Russia as the leading non-member producer, has previously implemented several output cuts to support oil prices.
However, oil prices have remained weak due to sluggish demand from China and higher production from countries like Brazil and Argentina, which are not part of OPEC+.
One positive outcome from the current situation is that U.S. consumers are benefiting from significantly lower gasoline prices, which have dropped to their lowest level in 2.5 years, nearing $3 per gallon.