The OPEC members' compliance with their oil output quotas fell to 53 per cent last month, the lowest level in a year.
A steady rebound in crude exports by the group controlling roughly 40 per cent of global oil supplies started last May, after compliance with OPEC's pledge to cut output by 4.2 million barrels per day (bpd) peaked at about 80 per cent the previous month. It has continued even as the outlook for global oil demand remained clouded.
"Required demand for OPEC crude is forecast to remain almost at the same level as last year, following two consecutive annual declines," the group's secretariat said yesterday in its latest monthly oil market report.
"The global recovery is proceeding apace, led by manufacturing, but the strength of the upturn in 2010 is still uncertain and regionally uneven," it added.
"The slower pace of recovery in US demand, despite positive economic signals, is a key uncertainty for oil demand growth this year."
Production by the 11 OPEC members bound by quotas rose last month by 148,000 bpd to about 26.8 million bpd. The group's compliance has slipped by almost half, as most of its members have sought to benefit from crude prices that have more than doubled in the past year.
Crude traded close to US$74 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange yesterday, up from a $32 per barrel low last February. It had fallen sharply from an all-time high of $147 the previous July, prompting OPEC to promise cuts equivalent to about 5 per cent of global demand.
Angola and Venezuela raised their oil output the most last month, respectively pumping 133,000 bpd and 105,000 bpd more than in December, OPEC said in its report.
Nigerian crude exports fell by 124,000 bpd as militants continued to attack oil and gas installations and kidnapped foreign oil workers in the country with Africa's second-biggest oil reserves.
Iraqi output declined last month by 85,000 bpd, OPEC said, after sabotage attacks ruptured the country's northern export line. Iraq is the only OPEC member not bound by a production quota.
Crude output by the UAE, which has had one of the highest records of OPEC quota compliance this past year, was flat last month compared with December.
Saudi Arabia, the biggest OPEC exporter, has recently informed customers in Asia, Europe and North America to expect steady crude volumes next month, as it had pledged to this month.
So far this year, Saudi Aramco, the national petroleum company, has shipped fully contracted crude volumes to most of its Asian customers with long-term contracts, after reducing supplies for most of last year.
The kingdom's oil production edged up by 5,000 bpd in January from December's level.
OPEC has kept its output target unchanged since late December 2008, following the record series of cuts announced in the last four months of the year.
The group's next meeting is scheduled for March 17 in Vienna, but top officials have said a decision to raise quotas would be unlikely if crude prices remained near recent levels.
@Email:tcarlisle@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
No.6 Collaborations Project
Ed Sheeran (Atlantic)
PROFILE
Name: Enhance Fitness
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 200
Amount raised: $3m
Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
The specs: 2018 Audi RS5
Price, base: Dh359,200
Engine: 2.9L twin-turbo V6
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 450hp at 5,700rpm
Torque: 600Nm at 1,900rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.7L / 100km
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (c), Chamani Senevirathne (vc), Subha Srinivasan, NIsha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Esha Oza, Ishani Senevirathne, Heena Hotchandani, Keveesha Kumari, Judith Cleetus, Chavi Bhatt, Namita D’Souza.
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
HAJJAN
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Abu%20Bakr%20Shawky%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3EStarring%3A%20Omar%20Alatawi%2C%20Tulin%20Essam%2C%20Ibrahim%20Al-Hasawi%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Brief scores:
Arsenal 4
Xhaka 25', Lacazette 55', Ramsey 79', Aubameyang 83'
Fulham 1
Kamara 69'
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young