Oil Surges as OPEC+ Prepares for Monday Meeting

Oil Surges as OPEC+ Prepares for Monday Meeting
Oil advanced as OPEC+ scheduled an urgent meeting next week after a historic slump in prices that has crippled the energy sector.

(Bloomberg) -- Oil advanced back above $31 a barrel in London, reversing earlier declines, as OPEC+ scheduled an urgent meeting next week after a historic slump in prices that has crippled the energy sector.

The coalition will hold a meeting by video conference on Monday, though it’s still not clear who will attend, according to delegates. News of the plan came just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump said he expected global producers including Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut more than 10 million barrels of production, triggering the biggest ever jump in prices on Thursday.

Futures had been trading lower earlier in the day on Friday on growing doubts over Trump’s claim, with Citigroup Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. saying any supply deal would anyway be too little, too late as demand craters due to efforts to stem the coronavirus.

But the market is interpreting next week’s meeting as a step closer to some sort of deal that could help address the collapse in prices.

Brent for June settlement climbed $1.54, or 5.1%, to $31.48 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange as of 8:43 a.m. in London after falling as much as 5.6% earlier. West Texas Intermediate for May delivery rose 0.8% to $25.52 on the New York Mercantile Exchange after declining as much as 7.1% earlier.

The virtual meeting will be open to all producers, not just those that are part of the OPEC+ alliance, according to the delegates. While Trump tweeted Thursday that he had spoken to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who had in turn spoken with Russian president, a person familiar with the situation said the U.S. president’s goal is purely aspirational and will ultimately hinge on whether Riyadh and Moscow can reach a deal.

“Even if there is an agreement to curtail 10 million barrels a day of output, the fundamentals show demand destruction and inventory builds,” said John Driscoll, chief strategist for JTD Energy Services Pte in Singapore. The “anxiety and mayhem out there is reminiscent of the financial crisis,” he added.

The outlook for the physical market remains bleak as discounts for some grades of physically delivered oil across the U.S. and Canada widened. Heavy Louisiana Sweet crude lost $1.75 a barrel relative to West Texas Intermediate to a record $10.50 discount.

Texas Railroad Commission Ryan Sitton, in a rare move for the state’s oil regulator, tweeted on Thursday that he spoke with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and discussed a 10-million barrel a day global output cut and would talk to the Saudi oil minister soon. Trump is scheduled to meet with U.S. oil company executives Friday as the administration seeks ways to help the beleaguered industry

--With assistance from James Thornhill.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Sharon Cho in Singapore at ccho28@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Serene Cheong at scheong20@bloomberg.net
Alexander Kwiatkowski



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