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UAE Energy Minister Asserts Commitment to OPEC+ Agreement

The UAE said it supports the OPEC+ efforts. (Reuters)
The UAE said it supports the OPEC+ efforts. (Reuters)
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UAE Energy Minister Asserts Commitment to OPEC+ Agreement

The UAE said it supports the OPEC+ efforts. (Reuters)
The UAE said it supports the OPEC+ efforts. (Reuters)

The United Arab Emirates is committed to the OPEC+ agreement and its existing monthly production adjustment mechanism, its energy minister said on Wednesday.

“The UAE believes in the value OPEC+ brings to the oil market,” UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei said in remarks to WAM New Agency.

OPEC+, comprising the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and their allies, has a deal to gradually raise output each month by 400,000 barrels per day.

The group has refused to act more quickly even as prices have rocketed higher because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

OPEC has earlier hailed UAE’s “tremendous efforts” over the past period to maintain consensus among the members of the organization towards all issues regarding the global oil market and the support it provides to maintain its balance and stability in a manner that takes into account the interests of producers and consumers alike, WAM reported.

A UAE source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday that the Gulf state would not act on its own to raise production and remained committed to OPEC+ policy.

The UAE source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Gulf state was committed to the OPEC+ alliance and only its energy ministry was responsible for oil policy.

Earlier, the UAE's ambassador to Washington, Yousuf al-Otaiba, said in a statement tweeted by the embassy that his country favors an oil production increase and will be encouraging OPEC to consider higher output.

“The UAE has been a reliable and responsible supplier of energy to global markets for more than 50 years and believes that stability in energy markets is critical to the global economy,” the tweet read.

The ambassador’s comment had suggested a shift in position, driving down Brent crude sharply and ended Wednesday 13% lower at $111.14 a barrel, the biggest one-day fall since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

But subsequent comments from the UAE source downplayed any shift in position, helping push prices back above $116 on Thursday.

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China Has ‘Very Big’ Policy Room to Spur Growth, Central Bank Adviser Says 

A man walks past office buildings at the central business district in Beijing on March 17, 2025. (AFP) 
A man walks past office buildings at the central business district in Beijing on March 17, 2025. (AFP) 
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China Has ‘Very Big’ Policy Room to Spur Growth, Central Bank Adviser Says 

A man walks past office buildings at the central business district in Beijing on March 17, 2025. (AFP) 
A man walks past office buildings at the central business district in Beijing on March 17, 2025. (AFP) 

China wields significant policy room to stimulate its economy this year while some reform was needed to boost consumption, Huang Yiping, an advisor to China's central bank and a professor at Peking University, said on Wednesday.

China has unveiled fresh fiscal measures, including a rise in its annual budget deficit, to help hit an economic growth target of around 5% this year, which analysts have described as ambitious. The central bank has pledged to cut interest rates and pump more money into the economy at an appropriate time.

"There is still very big space in terms of macro policies," Huang told Reuters on the sidelines of the annual Boao forum.

Macro policies will help tackle cyclical problems, while some structural challenges could be resolved in the future, he said.

Some reform measures, including those to increase people's incomes and confidence, are needed to boost consumption, on top of recent moves unveiled by the government, Huang said.

Peng Sen, chairman of the China Society of Economic Reform, told the Boao Forum on Tuesday that China should take steps to boost consumption as a share of gross domestic product to 70% by 2035 from around 55% currently, narrowing the gap with developed nations.

Wider structural reforms include changes in institutional frameworks, income distribution, and fiscal and taxation systems will be needed to help boost spending, Peng said.

The Boao Forum, an international summit seen as Asia's version of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, is being held in China's Hainan province from Tuesday through Friday.

Policymakers have put expanding domestic demand, especially consumption, as the top priority this year as they try to cushion the impact of the Trump administration's tariffs on its crucial export engine.

Huang also told the forum that globalization, which has benefited many Asian economies, could be reversed.

"Many of the most successful economies in the last half century or more, like East Asian economies - China and so on -all benefited from globalization, but there is certainly a risk that the US-led globalization may be reversed," Huang said.