Oil production curb as prices fall - News in brief - Evening Standard
       

Oil production curb as prices fall

Production cartel Opec has announced it plans to curb output by more than half a million barrels as oil prices slid to their lowest levels since April.

Opec members released a statement after their regular six-monthly meeting in Vienna saying the organisation had agreed to produce 28.8 million barrels a day - a cutback of 530,000 barrels a day.

The move is a compromise meant to avoid new turmoil in oil markets while at the same time reflecting Opec's attempts to prevent prices from falling too far.

October Brent crude fell by 4.14 US dollars to 99.30 US dollars a barrel on London's ICE commodities exchange, slipping below 100 US dollars for the first time since the beginning of April.

Light, sweet crude traded on New York Mercantile Exchange - the world's benchmark crude price - also dropped to a level not seen since April, falling by more than three US dollars a barrel to settle at 103.26 US dollars.

Petrol prices on UK forecourts have not fallen as quickly, with average unleaded petrol down from July's peak of 119.7p to 112.7p at the weekend - a drop of nearly 6%. Average diesel prices have fallen from 133.3p to 124.1p, just under 7%.

OPEC nations have around two-thirds of the world's known oil reserves, and account for 40% of the world's oil production. Other members include Iraq, Venezuela and Indonesia.

The AA said it takes around four to six weeks for oil price changes to filter through to forecourt pumps.

As long as there is no shock in the supply of oil, the fall could result in a drop in the cost of petrol for UK motorists.

Andrew Howard, spokesman for the AA, added: "The fact that the slide in price has started does not guarantee that prices around the world will fall."

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