As widely expected, oil producers have completely ignored Biden’s pleas and/or demand for an output hike, and a panel of OPEC+ ministers recommended sticking to their current pace of gradual production increases.
After a brief video conference, the group’s Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (or JMMC), which oversees OPEC+ production cuts, recommended a 400,000 barrel-a-day supply increase for December, delegates said.
That’s a pace that major consumers say is too slow to sustain the post-Covid economic recovery, contributing to an increase in crude prices of about 30% since August.
OPEC+ will now consider the recommendation at a full ministerial meeting, where it is expected to endorse the recommendation.
According to Bloomberg, once the cartel rejects U.S. pleas to boost oil supply, “it could face a bare-knuckle fight with the White House, amid growing speculation that the U.S. could tap emergency crude stockpiles in an effort to drive down prices.”
The next OPEC+ meeting date is set for Dec 2 where the cartel will likely ignore Biden’s pleas for more output again unless oil is trading in triple digits by then.