Saudis cut oil output again as budget reels

Production slashed to the lowest level in 18 years

Saudi Arabia announced a surprise move to slash oil output to the lowest in 18 years as it tries to spur the recovery from an energy crisis that has devastated the kingdom’s finances.

Just hours after unveiling a slew of dramatic austerity measures, Saudi Arabia said it would cut oil output by another one million barrels a day on top of what it already agreed with OPEC allies. Oil futures rose, and Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates followed up with extra cuts of their own.

“We have to be ahead of the curve,” Saudi Oil Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told Bloombergin a phone interview on Monday.

“The voluntary cuts will further expedite the re-balancing process.” It’s a sign of the urgency in Riyadh to stabilize the oil market as rock-bottom prices force the kingdom to impose deep spending cuts and to triple value-added tax. And it marks the latest step in Saudi Arabia’s retreat from the price war it started in March when it moved to flood the market with cheap crude after talks with OPEC-plus allies broke down.

The cuts come days after U.S. President Donald Trumpspoke on the phone with King Salman. The White House said that both leaders had agreed “on the importance of stability in global energy markets.”

Trump has repeatedly put pressure on Saudi Arabia, Russia and other OPEC-plus countries to cut output in an effort to save the American oil industry. For some the cuts come too late: a large number of oil tankers dispatched weeks ago with Saudi crude are about to hit America’s shores, exacerbating the glut.

Riyadh aims to pump just under 7.5 million barrels a day in June, compared with an official target under the most recent OPEC-plus agreement of just under 8.5 million a day. If Saudi Arabia makes good on its pledge, its production will drop to the lowest since mid-2002, according to Bloomberg.

The cut is particularly symbolic as it brings Saudi production below eight million barrels a day, long seen by many consultants and traders as a line that wouldn’t be crossed because of the impact it has on oil revenue.

But as the oil crash forces austerity measures worth about $27 billion, the kingdom’s options are running out.

Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates followed up with cuts of 80,000 barrels a day and 100,000 respectively.