Oil prices climb after OPEC announces production cut

Top oil-producing countries including OPEC members on Sunday said they will cut oil output beginning in May through the end of the year. Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and several other nations said they will collectively decrease production by more than 1.15 million barrels per day. Russia also extended its production cut of 500,000 barrels per day. Oil prices rose nearly six percent Monday and the global benchmark for crude oil jumped to more than $85 per barrel. The price had dropped to $73 per barrel last week after a high of more than $100 per barrel last summer.

Has oil production been cut before? Members of OPEC in October agreed to slash oil production by two million barrels per day. Saudi Arabia, a key member of the organization, said Sunday that the move is a precaution to avoid a significant drop in oil prices. President Joe Biden last year appealed to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to increase oil production, but OPEC has continued to decrease output.

Dig deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta’s report in The Stew about the response to Alaska’s Willow oil project.