OPEC+ Says Additional Voluntary Oil Production Cuts Will Be 1.66 Mln Bpd

The OPEC logo pictured ahead of an informal meeting between members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Algiers, Algeria, September 28, 2016. (Reuters)
The OPEC logo pictured ahead of an informal meeting between members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Algiers, Algeria, September 28, 2016. (Reuters)
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OPEC+ Says Additional Voluntary Oil Production Cuts Will Be 1.66 Mln Bpd

The OPEC logo pictured ahead of an informal meeting between members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Algiers, Algeria, September 28, 2016. (Reuters)
The OPEC logo pictured ahead of an informal meeting between members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Algiers, Algeria, September 28, 2016. (Reuters)

The 48th Meeting of OPEC’s Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) was held via videoconference on Monday.

The Committee reviewed the crude oil production data for January and February 2023 and noted the overall conformity for participating OPEC and non-OPEC countries of the Declaration of Cooperation (DoC).

The Members of the JMMC reaffirmed their commitment to the DoC which extends to the end of 2023 as decided at the 33rd OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting on October 5, 2022, and urged all participating countries to achieve full conformity and adhere to the compensation mechanism.

The meeting noted the following voluntarily production adjustment announced on Sunday by Saudi Arabia (500,000 bpd); Iraq (211,000 bpd); United Arab Emirates (144,000 bpd); Kuwait (128,000 bpd); Kazakhstan (78,000 bpd); Algeria (48,000 bpd); Oman (40,000 bpd); and Gabon (8,000 bpd) starting May until the end of 2023. These will be in addition to the production adjustments decided at the 33rd OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting.

The above will be in addition to the announced voluntary adjustment by Russia of 500,000 bpd until the end of 2023, which will be from the average production levels as assessed by the secondary sources for February 2023.

Accordingly, this will bring the total additional voluntary production adjustments by the above-mentioned countries to 1.66 million bpd.

The meeting noted that this is a precautionary measure aimed at supporting the stability of the oil market.

The next meeting of the JMMC is scheduled for June 4.



Black Friday Data Shows US Shoppers Spent $10.8 Bln Online

A woman and a child look at shops in a mall on Black Friday in Arlington, Virginia on November 29, 2024. (AFP)
A woman and a child look at shops in a mall on Black Friday in Arlington, Virginia on November 29, 2024. (AFP)
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Black Friday Data Shows US Shoppers Spent $10.8 Bln Online

A woman and a child look at shops in a mall on Black Friday in Arlington, Virginia on November 29, 2024. (AFP)
A woman and a child look at shops in a mall on Black Friday in Arlington, Virginia on November 29, 2024. (AFP)

US shoppers used their mobile phones, laptops, desktops and other devices to make roughly $10.8 billion in purchases online on Black Friday, an updated tally from Adobe Analytics showed.

Black Friday, the day after American Thanksgiving, marks the official start of the holiday shopping season for retailers and competition has intensified among retailers to win every penny-pinched shopper seeking discounts.

Increased online shopping potentially favors e-commerce giants such as Amazon.com and Walmart. Walmart, which operates 4,700 US stores, has invested heavily in store-to-home deliveries for the holiday season to boost e-commerce.

US spending online on Black Friday rose 10.2%, said Adobe, which keeps track of devices that use its software to help power more than 1 trillion visits to  US retail sites.

Corey Coscioni, 58, said he looked for bargains online as well as in stores on Black Friday, seeking "gifts for everyone: my wife, my daughter, and myself."

Top selling merchandise online included makeup, skincare and haircare products, as well as bluetooth speakers and espresso machines, Adobe said on Saturday.

Online sales of toys rose 622% compared to average daily sales in October, while jewelry sales rose 561% and appliances spiked 476% compared to October, it added.

Department store chains such as Macy's and Kohl's as well as big-box retailer Target could see muted sales this season, which is shorter with only 26 days between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

In 2023, US shoppers spent $9.8 billion online on Black Friday, and in 2022, they spent $9.1 billion, Adobe said.