Opec+ confounds market with three-month cuts easing

The group had been widely anticipated to keep the prior agreement in place, but a rapidly agreed deal will see cuts relaxed through the summer

The Opec+ group has yet again caught markets off-guard, agreeing on 1 April to a gradual easing of output restrictions over the next three months. This means the 7mn bl/d of collective production withheld through to the end of April will be reduced by 350,000bl/d in May, by the same amount in June and by another 450,000bl/d in July. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia will also ease its additional voluntary 1mn bl/d cut by 250,000bl/d in May, 350,000bl/d in June and 400,000bl/d in July, bringing 2.15mn bl/d of oil production back online by mid-summer. “Our return of this voluntary cut, we will do it also gradually, mindful of how the market may react” – Abdulaziz, Saudi energy minister With memb