Global oil prices would have surged higher if not for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, the United Arab Emirates said.
- UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al-Mazrouei said the OPEC+ drove the globe to avoid having double or triple the current prices, which he said is something that markets “need to appreciate.”
- The group is easing the supply cuts at a rate of 400,000 barrels a day monthly, even as the United States and other major consumers such as Japan and India push for output hikes.
- Mazrouei said the oil market has been far calmer than those for natural gas and coal, with prices more than doubled in Europe and Asia in 2021 due to shortages which caused a hike in electricity costs.
Mazrouei has blamed the rise in gas and coal prices on governments, discouraging investment in fossil fuels.
Source: Bloomberg