15/11/2001

No decision from non-members but OPEC agree cut

Oil production cartel, the Organisation of Oil Producing Countries (OPEC), have conditionally agreed a production cut of 1.5m barrels a day following a 30 per cent drop in oil prices since September 11.

The organisation hope that the cut will stimulate the price of crude, but the success of the move depends on similar cuts from on OPEC producers, notably Mexico, Russia and Norway.

The Mexican government have announced an export cut of up to 100,000 barrels per day, a reduction conditional on OPEC confirming their own cut and similar agreements from other producer countries.

OPEC have requested that non-members agree to a combined cut of 500,000 barrels per day, but Russia and Norway, the two biggest exporters among non-OPEC producers, have yet to confirm this move, threatening to derail the deal even before Mexican or OPEC cuts are implemented.

OPEC fears that even if they reduce supply from their members, the markets will still be flooded by oil from other producers, which would mean the revenue streams of OPEC members would be substantially lowered despite their own sacrificial cuts.

(GB)

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