Saudi Arabia's energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman with his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak at the Opec+ meeting in Vienna in December. Reuters
Saudi Arabia's energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman with his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak at the Opec+ meeting in Vienna in December. Reuters
Saudi Arabia's energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman with his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak at the Opec+ meeting in Vienna in December. Reuters
Saudi Arabia's energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman with his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak at the Opec+ meeting in Vienna in December. Reuters

Gulf states back Riyadh's call for emergency producers meeting


Jennifer Gnana
  • English
  • Arabic

Gulf states backed Saudi Arabia's proposal for an emergency Opec+ meeting that could include the US, the world's largest producer, for the first time as oil prices continued to fall.

The UAE, Opec's third-largest producer, said it fully backed Riyadh's calls for a meeting of the producers, which was tentatively set for Thursday.

''A joint and combined effort by all oil-producing countries is required, not only the group of Opec+ countries, in order to address the weakness of demand in the global oil market," UAE Minister of Energy and Industry Suhail Al Mazrouei said in a statement carried by state news agency Wam.

The UAE is "confident that, if an agreement can be reached, all producing countries will work quickly and co-operatively to address the weak demand for oil in global markets, helping to rebalance the market and maintain global oil inventories at reasonable levels".

His comments come as the world's top oil producers rushed to contain a rout in oil prices, which last week rounded off the worst quarter on record.

Crude commodity benchmarks Brent and West Texas Intermediate have been in free fall, plunging to 70 per cent of their value from their most recent peak in January. The slump in oil prices has been exacerbated by a decline in demand due to the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, which coincided with a collapse in talks to deepen cuts by members of the Opec+ alliance. Global oil consumption has declined by a third after countries closed borders and enforced strict social distancing and lockdown measures to contain the outbreak.

Kuwait, the group's fourth-largest producer, also backed Saudi Arabia's push for early talks to contain the fall in oil prices.

"We totally support Saudi Arabia ... and its current efforts in bringing back Opec and non-Opec countries to the table," Kuwait's oil minister Khaled Al Fadhel told Reuters. "We always welcome efforts to stabilise the market for the benefit of producers and consumers. We are being proactive and many countries are working hard on it to make it a success."

Meanwhile, Iraq, the group's second-biggest producer, said any future output restriction pact should include producers outside the alliance such as the US, Canada and Norway.

Crude benchmarks surged by 30 per cent after US President Donald Trump's comments last week that Riyadh and Moscow were likely to resolve their differences. But prices fell again during early trading on Monday.

Brent, the most widely traded benchmark, was down 3.55 per cent trading at $32.90 per barrel at 3.22pm UAE time, while WTI was down 3.67 per cent at $27.30 per barrel.

On Saturday, Saudi Arabia dismissed remarks attributed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that the kingdom was responsible for the collapse of the Opec+ deal, and said the alliance had tried to agree on further oil production cuts but Moscow refused.

US National Economic Council director Larry Kudlow remained optimistic that Mr Trump's mediation to push for talks between Russia and Saudi Arabia "will bear fruit", he told Bloomberg Television.

A revival of 'multilateral' oil politics was likely, noted Norbert Rücker, head of economics and next-generation research at Julius Baer. He expected a deal among producers or for the US to pressure Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut separately.

"The petro-nations and the United States have limited interest in watching their oil business fight brute market forces or in watching their petro-revenues running dry. Given Saudi Arabia’s dependence on US support, and given the US sanctions on Russia, there are some trump cards on the table of global oil politics," he said.

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ALL THE RESULTS

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Lightweight

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Catch 74kg

Omar Hussein (JOR) bt Tohir Zhuraev (TJK) by decision.

Strawweight (Female)

Seo Ye-dam (KOR) bt Weronika Zygmunt (POL) by decision.

Featherweight

Kaan Ofli (TUR) bt Walid Laidi (ALG) by TKO.

Lightweight

Abdulla Al Bousheiri (KUW) bt Leandro Martins (BRA) by TKO.

Welterweight

Ahmad Labban (LEB) bt Sofiane Benchohra (ALG) by TKO.

Bantamweight

Jaures Dea (CAM) v Nawras Abzakh (JOR) no contest.

Lightweight

Mohammed Yahya (UAE) bt Glen Ranillo (PHI) by TKO round 1.

Lightweight

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Welterweight

Mounir Lazzez (TUN) bt Sasha Palatkinov (HKG) by TKO round 1.

Featherweight title bout

Romando Dy (PHI) v Lee Do-gyeom (KOR) by KO round 1.

Indika
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Saturday (UAE kick-off times)

Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)

Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)

West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)

Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)

Sunday

Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)

Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)

Everton v Liverpool (10pm)

Monday

Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: N2 Technology

Founded: 2018

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: Startups

Size: 14

Funding: $1.7m from HNIs

Suggested picnic spots

Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
 
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes 

Global Fungi Facts

• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil

Racecard
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog

Hobbies: Salsa dancing “It's in my blood” and listening to music in different languages

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Favourite food: “I'm a vegetarian, so I can't get enough of salad.”

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Best spot in the UAE: “I fell in love with Fujairah and anywhere outside the big cities, where I can get some peace and get a break from the busy lifestyle”

The Pope's itinerary

Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport


Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial


Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
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The specs

Engine: 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 540hp at 6,500rpm

Torque: 600Nm at 2,500rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Kerb weight: 1580kg

Price: From Dh750k

On sale: via special order

Dubai World Cup factbox

Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)

Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)

Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)

Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)

Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request