Opec+ intends to maintain oil output freeze

Opec+, the oil alliance led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, is reportedly planning to maintain an output freeze when it meets this weekend amid signs of potential oversupply.

Saudi Arabia and Russia will lead the monthly video conference on January 4 to review the November decision to halt further supply increases during the first quarter, Bloomberg reported, citing three unidentified delegations.

In December Opec said in a statement that eight Opec+ members had paused oil output hikes for the first quarter of 2026 after releasing 2.9 million barrels per day (bpd) into the market since April 2025.

Opec+ members such as Russia, Iran and Venezuela are under Western sanctions.

Crude futures have lost 17 percent in 2025 and are headed for their biggest annual drop since the 2020 pandemic, the report said.

Many independent analysts forecast substantial oversupply in global oil markets next year, driven by non-Opec production growth and uneven economic indicators in major consuming regions, Frank Kane, Editor-at-Large at AGBI, wrote in a column.

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