Adds May output hike of 206,000 b/d, in line with April levels
The eight core Opec+ members scheduled to meet today to discuss May output policy have agreed on a production increase in line with April, delegate sources told Argus, despite conflict in the Mideast Gulf disrupting the group's supplies.
The eight core Opec+ members will agree to another 206,000 b/d output increase for May, the delegate sources said.
More importantly, they will discuss current market conditions related to the ongoing war in the Mideast Gulf and are expected to offer "clarifications" to markets, sources added.
Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Russia, the UAE, Algeria, Oman and Kazakhstan agreed on 1 March to raise their collective crude production ceiling by 206,000 b/d in April. The increase is part of a process the group began in April 2025 to unwind a large set of production cuts.
That meeting came a day after the US and Israel launched air strikes on Iran, and before Tehran moved to block trade routes through the strait of Hormuz, limiting oil flows to global markets from the world's most critical waterway, which typically handles around 15mn b/d of crude supply.
This has pushed Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE to either reduce production or shut in volumes entirely, with Kuwait declaring force majeure on oil exports.
Production from these four countries — all part of the Opec+ core group — is estimated to have fallen by a combined 9.15mn b/d, according to Argus assessments, versus February levels.
