by 135,000 barrels per day in May.

That would be the second monthly increase under a plan to unwind some of the millions of barrels per day of cuts the group has had in place since 2022

The plan will represent monthly cuts of between 189,000 barrels per day and 435,000 bpd, according to a table on OPEC’s web site. The scheduled cuts last until June 2026

OPEC+ pushed back the start of oil output rises by three months until April and extended the full unwinding of cuts by a year until the end of 2026 due to weak demand and booming production outside the group

OPEC+ is discussing postponing its oil output hike due to start in January for the first quarter of 2025 and will hold further talks on this and other options ahead of its delayed policy meeting on Dec. 5

Saudi Arabia, Russia and Kazakhstan stressed the importance of full commitment to the voluntary oil production cuts agreed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies

OPEC+ has already delayed a plan to gradually increase production several times this year due to falling prices, weak demand, and increased output from producers outside the group

In a monthly report, OPEC said world oil demand would rise by 1.82 million barrels per day in 2024, down from growth of 1.93 million bpd forecast last month. Until August, OPEC had kept the outlook unchanged since its first forecast in July 2023

The oil market is currently balanced and demand is expected to average 104.5 million barrels per day this year, the CEO of Saudi Arabian oil giant Saudi Aramco said

A meeting of top OPEC+ ministers has kept oil output policy unchanged including a plan to start raising output from December, while also emphasizing the need for some members to make further cuts to compensate for overproduction

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies will go ahead with a planned oil production increase in December but first need to cut output to address overproduction by some members