Opec+, an alliance of oil producers led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, will begin easing an output restriction from August as demand for crude returns amid easing of movement restrictions in many countries.
The group, which is cutting back 9.7 million barrels per day of production until the end of July, will lower the curbs to 7.7m bpd from August 1, Opec’s joint ministerial monitoring committee said on Wednesday.
Opec’s second-largest producer Iraq and Nigeria are set to cut output further, compensating for their overproduction between May and June when the agreement was underway. This would lead to the group cutting back a total of around 8.1m bpd from the markets in August.
Saudi Arabia's energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, who chaired the JMMC meeting, said the overall 8.1m bpd cut in August included compensatory cuts for May only. Countries that have not fulfilled their quotas in July have yet to submit their schedules to the committee.
"Once that happens, there will be an additional increment beyond the 8.1m bpd,” Prince Abdulaziz told reporters following the meeting.
Oil prices rallied following the agreement to ease output curbs. Brent, the international benchmark rose 1.03 per cent to trade at $43.34 per barrel at 9pm UAE time. West Texas Intermediate, the key US gauge, was up 1.07 per cent to trade at $40.72 per barrel.
Opec’s JMMC said that the seasonality of demand for crude will be “more pronounced this year, with a commensurate increase in demand for utilities and travel during the summer".
“For many members, including Saudi Arabia, we envisage that 500,000 bpd of the so called increment that we will be producing in the month of August will go to our domestic markets,” Prince Abdulaziz said.
He expected an increase in petrol and diesel consumption as countries around the world ease movement restrictions.
The minister said that the agreement to implement tapered cuts until April 2022 remains valid. Opec+, which will convene for an extraordinary meeting in December, will decide on the viability of extending these cuts.
Opec’s joint technical committee will next meet on August 17 while the JMMC will convene on August 18.
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Price: From Dh215,900
On sale: Now
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company%20Profile
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How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Scores in brief:
Day 1
New Zealand (1st innings) 153 all out (66.3 overs) - Williamson 63, Nicholls 28, Yasir 3-54, Haris 2-11, Abbas 2-13, Hasan 2-38
Pakistan (1st innings) 59-2 (23 overs)
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
The view from The National
