OIL PRICES SPIKE AFTER OPEC, OTHERS AGREE TO PRODUCTION CUT
Oil prices spiked sharply higher on Friday as major oil producers, including the Opec cartel, agreed to cut global oil production by 1.2 million barrels a day to reduce oversupply. Following two days of meetings, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) that includes the likes of Saudi Arabia and Iraq said they would cut 800,000 barrels per day for six months from January, though some countries such as Iran, which is facing wide-ranging sanctions from the US, have been given an exemption. The balance will come from Russia and other non-Opec countries. The US, one of the world’s biggest producers, is not part of the deal.