Oil rose over 2% on Friday as Iraq expressed support for output restrictions ahead of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries meeting in two weeks.
The Times reported that the US West Texas Intermediate crude saw a $1.43 or 1.9% increase in trading to $77.17 per barrel, while Brent futures gained $1.42 or 1.8% to close at $81.43 a barrel.
For the first time since May, Brent and WTI posted their third consecutive week of losses as prices dropped 4%.
Iraq, a founding member and prominent participant in OPEC, declared in a statement on Friday that Baghdad was dedicated to the OPEC+ agreement on determining production levels, two weeks ahead of a key meeting of the producer group.
Without providing a timeline, Iraq’s Oil Minister, Mr. Hayan Abdel-Ghani, stated on Tuesday that the country’s oil exports from the southern areas had grown by 350,000 barrels per day.
Due to a disagreement with Turkey, exports of oil produced in northern Iraq, which were producing about 450,000 barrels per day, have been suspended since late March.
In a statement released on Friday, the ministry said that increasing exports were “normal” and had no bearing on the total production restrictions set forth in the OPEC+ framework.
Additionally, it stated that “seasonality and declining domestic consumption can occasionally be the cause of these fluctuations.”
Additionally, OPEC+ “will not hesitate to take decisions that bring stability to the oil market,” according to the statement.
The goal of OPEC+, a group of allies, is to decide on production policy at their meeting in Vienna on November 26.
Along with Iraq’s remarks, Saudi Arabia and Russia also declared this week that they would keep reducing their oil output until the end of the year.
According to energy services company Baker Hughes, the number of oil rigs in operation in the US fell for the second consecutive week to its lowest level since January 2022. The number of rigs indicates future production.
This week’s weak economic data from China heightened concerns about the country’s declining demand for crude oil, as Chinese refiners—China being the world’s biggest importer of the oil produced in Saudi Arabia asked for a reduction in supplies for December.
In addition to pricing pressure, US consumer confidence declined for a fourth straight month in November and households’ expectations for inflation rose again.
