BUSINESS OF OIL

TENTATIVE DEAL ON OUTPUT CUT

OPEC tentatively agreed to an oil output cut yesterday but was waiting for a commitment from non-Opec heavyweight Russia before deciding the exact volumes for a production reduction aimed at propping up crude prices. Russian energy minister Alexander Novak flew home from Vienna earlier for talks with President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg. Novak returns to the Austrian capital today for discussions among Saudi-led Opec and the group’s allies. The price of crude has fallen almost a third since October but US President Donald Trump has demanded that Opec makes oil even cheaper by refraining from output cuts. “We hope to conclude something by the end of the day tomorrow… We have to get the nonOpec countries on board,” Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih said before the Opec meeting started. “If everybody is not willing to join and contribute equally, we will wait until they are.” Falih said all options were on the table. Possible output cuts by Opec and its allies ranged from 0.5-1.5 million bpd. I Reuters