RYAN ROBERTSON: OPEC SAID THURSDAY IT WOULD PUMP MORE OIL, BUT DON’T EXPECT GAS PRICES TO CHANGE MUCH.
THE ORGANIZATION OF THE PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES AGREED TO UP CRUDE OUTPUT BY 648,000 BARRELS PER DAY IN BOTH JULY AND AUGUST.
THE ADDED SUPPLY REPRESENTS LESS THAN 1% OF GLOBAL DEMAND, AND IT WILL DO LITTLE TO COVER THE LOSS OF RUSSIAN OIL ON GLOBAL MARKETS.
RUSSIA IS PRODUCING ABOUT A MILLION FEWER BARRELS PER DAY BECAUSE OF WESTERN SANCTIONS, AND THE DEFICIT COULD TRIPLE ACCORDING TO A RANGE OF INDUSTRY ESTIMATES.
OPEC’S ANNOUNCEMENT IS SEEN AS A LARGELY SYMBOLIC, BUT GOOD-WILL GESTURE TOWARDS THE WEST.
A POTENTIAL SUMMIT BETWEEN PRESIDENT BIDEN AND GULF ARAB LEADERS IS IN THE WORKS FOR LATER THIS MONTH.
BUT EVEN IF THE RESULT OF THAT SUMMIT IS INCREASED CRUDE OIL OUTPUT BY OPEC, YOU STILL SHOULDN’T EXPECT GAS PRICES TO DROP DRAMATICALLY. MOST OPEC COUNTRIES ARE ALREADY PRODUCING AT CAPACITY.